Vanion nodded. ‘Yes, but Sephrenia appealed to the Younger Gods of Styricum and they exorcized it. Then they stripped Martel of the most significant of his powers. He went away weeping and swearing revenge upon us all. He’s still dangerous, but at least he can’t summon up horrors any more. He left Elenia and he’s been hiring his sword out to the highest bidder in other parts of the world for the past ten or twelve years.’

‘He’s just a common mercenary then?’ Darellon asked. The slender Alcione Preceptor had an intent look on his narrow face.

‘Not quite common, my Lord,’ Sparhawk disagreed. ‘He’s had Pandion training. He could have been the very best of us, and he’s very clever. He has wide contacts with mercenaries all over Eosia. He can raise an army at a moment’s notice and he’s totally ruthless. I don’t believe that Martel believes in anything any more.’

‘What does he look like?’ Darellon asked.

‘A little bigger than medium size,’ Kalten replied. ‘He’s about the same age as Sparhawk and me, but he’s got white hair – he has had since he was in his twenties.’

‘I think we might all want to keep an eye out for him,’ Abriel suggested. ‘Who’s the other one – Adus?’

‘Adus is an animal,’ Kalten told him. ‘After Martel was expelled from the Pandions, he recruited Adus and a man named Krager to help him in his activities. Adus is a Pelosian, I think or maybe a Lamork. He can barely talk, so his accent is a little hard to identify. He’s a total savage, devoid of human feelings. He enjoys killing people – slowly – and he’s very good at it.’

‘And the other one?’ Komier asked. ‘Krager?’

‘Krager’s fairly intelligent,’ Sparhawk replied. ‘Basically, he’s a criminal – false coins, extortion, fraud, that sort of thing – but he’s weak. Martel trusts him to perform tasks that Adus wouldn’t be able to understand.’

‘What’s the link between Annias and Martel?’ Count Radun asked.

‘Probably nothing more than money, my Lord.’ Sparhawk shrugged. ‘Martel is for hire and he has no strong convictions about anything. There are rumours that he has about a half-ton of gold hidden somewhere.’

‘I was right,’ Komier said bluntly ‘You should have killed him, Vanion.’

‘I made the offer,’ Sparhawk said, ‘but Vanion said no.’

‘I had reasons,’ Vanion said.

‘Was there anything significant about the fact that there were Rendors in the party that attacked Count Radun’s house?’ Abriel asked then.

‘Probably not,’ Sparhawk replied. ‘I’ve just come back from Rendor. There’s a pool of mercenaries there in the same way that there is in Pelosia, Lamorkand, and Cammoria. Martel draws on those people whenever he needs men. Rendorish mercenaries have no particular religious convictions, Eshandist or otherwise.’

‘Do we have enough evidence against Annias to take before the Hierocracy in Chyrellos?’ Darellon asked.