‘We’re getting a little far afield here,’ Vanion said. ‘We can’t compel the queen to leave Cimmura, and there’s no way to be absolutely certain that a force large enough to hold the walls can reach the city before we’re called away.’

‘I think the force is already here, Lord Vanion,’ Talen disagreed. The boy was dressed in the elegant doublet and hose Stragen had provided for him in Emsat, and he looked not unlike a youthful nobleman.

‘Don’t interrupt, Talen,’ Kurik said. ‘This is serious business. We don’t have time for childish jokes.’

‘Let him speak, Kurik,’ the Earl of Lenda said intently. ‘Good ideas can sometimes come from the most unusual places. Exactly what is this force you spoke of, young man?’

‘The people,’ Talen replied simply.

‘That’s absurd, Talen,’ Kurik said. ‘They aren’t trained.’

‘How much training do you really need in order to pour boiling pitch down on the heads of a besieging army?’ Talen shrugged.

‘It’s a very interesting notion, young man,’ Lenda said. ‘There was, in fact, an outpouring of popular support for Queen Ehlana after her coronation. The people of Cimmura – and of the surrounding towns and villages – might very well come to her aid. The problem, though, is that they don’t have any leaders. A mob of people milling around in the streets without anyone to direct them wouldn’t be much of a defence.’

‘There are leaders about, My Lord.’

‘Who?’ Vanion asked the boy.

‘Platime for one,’ Talen offered, ‘and if Stragen’s still here, he’d probably be fairly good at it as well.’

‘This Platime’s a sort of a scoundrel, isn’t he?’ Bevier asked dubiously.

‘Sir Bevier,’ Lenda said, ‘I’ve served on the royal council of Elenia for many years now, and I can assure you that not only the capital, but the entire kingdom as well has been in the hands of scoundrels for decades now.’

‘But –’ Bevier started to protest.

‘Is it the fact that Platime and Stragen are official scoundrels that upsets you, Sir Bevier?’ Talen asked lightly.

‘What do you think, Sparhawk?’ Lenda asked. ‘Do you think this Platime fellow could really direct some kind of military operation?’

Sparhawk thought it over. ‘He probably could,’ he said, ‘particularly if Stragen’s still here to help him.’

‘Stragen?’

‘He holds a position similar to Platime’s among the thieves in Emsat. Stragen’s a strange one, but he’s extremely intelligent, and he’s had an excellent education.’

‘They can call in old debts as well,’ Talen said. ‘Platime can draw men from Vardenais, Demos, the towns of Lenda and Cardos – not to mention the men he can get from the robber bands operating out in the countryside.’