It might have been five minutes – or an hour – or even a century, when a muffled clinking came from the very far end of the vast cellar. ‘Soldiers,’ Sparhawk breathed to Delada. ‘Let’s hope the man leading them doesn’t bring them all inside this place.’

‘Indeed,’ Delada breathed back.

Then a dark-robed and hooded man slipped through the doorway, shielding a single candle with one hand. He lit the candle on the table, blew out his own and threw back his hood.

‘I should have known,’ Delada whispered to Sparhawk. ‘It’s the Primate of Cimmura.’

‘It is indeed, my friend. It is indeed.’

The soldiers came nearer. They were making some effort to muffle the clinking of their equipment, but soldiers as a group have never been much good at stealth. ‘This is far enough,’ a familiar voice commanded. ‘Draw back a little way. I’ll call if I need you.’

There was a pause, and then Martel entered. He was carrying his helmet, and his white hair shone in the light of the single guttering candle on the table in front of the Primate. ‘Well, Annias,’ he drawled, ‘we made a good try, but the game’s played out.’

‘What are you talking about, Martel?’ Annias snapped. ‘Everything’s going our way.’

‘It changed direction on us about an hour ago.’

‘Stop trying to be cryptic, Martel. Tell me what’s happening.’

“There’s an army marching in from the west, Annias.’

‘That other wave of Cammorian mercenaries you told me about?’

‘I rather suspect that those mercenaries have been ground into dog-meat by now, Annias.’ Martel unbuckled his sword-belt. ‘Hate to break it to you this way, old boy, but that’s Wargun’s army marching in from the west. They stretch out as far as the eye can reach.’

Sparhawk’s heart leapt with exultation.

‘Wargun?’ Annias cried. ‘You said you’d taken care of keeping him away from Chyrellos.’

‘Thought I had, old boy, but somehow someone got through to him.’

‘His army’s even bigger than yours?’

Martel sank wearily into his chair. ‘God, I’m tired,’ he confessed. ‘I haven’t slept for two days. You were saying?’

‘Has Wargun got more men than you have?’