James Barclay - A Shout for the Dead: The Ascendants of Estorea Book 2 (GollanczF.)

THE ASCENDANTS OF ESTOREA

BOOK 2

This edition published 2006 by BCA by arrangement with Gollancz an imprint of The Orion Publishing Group

CN 147470

Copyright James Barclay 2007 All rights reserved

The right of James Barclay to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accor dance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

Typeset by Input Data Services Ltd, Frome

Printed in Great Britain by Clays Ltd, St Ives pl c

Dedication

This book is dedicated to the memory of David Gemmell. A great friend and a peerless mentor. The world is the poorer without you.

Acknowledgements

One day in January 2006, I went to visit David Gemmell and as a result, this book is the one I hoped it would be. David had a way of visualising and solving problems when we talked that I will never be able to replace. Sadly, it is a debt I will never be able to repay.

I also want to thank Simon Spanton for (still) putting up with the job of editing my work; my wife, Clare, who tries damned hard to make sure I sit in front of the PC and actually put finger to keyboard for enough hours every day; William Montanaro for producing a terrific and growing web resource for the Ascendants (address below); and Ariel, Lizzy Hill and Paul Maloney for their fantastic help with the website, forum, maps, and all that online stuff. I am more grateful than you know.

Cast List

OFFICERS OF THE ASCENDANCY ACADEMY

Hesther Naravny mother of the

ascendancy, land warden

Andreas Koll ascendancy echelon, land warden

Meera Naravny ascendancy echelon, firewalker

Harkov general of the ascendancy guard

Arducius ascendant of the 9 strand

Mirron ascendant of the 9th strand

Ossacer ascendant of the 9 strand

Cygalius ascendant of the ioth strand

Tola ascendant of the ioth strand

Petrevius ascendant of the ioth strand

Mina ascendant of the ioth strand

Bryn ascendant of the ioth strand

Kessian ascendant, son of mirron

OFFICERS OF THE ESTOREAN CONQUORD

Herine Del Aglios advocate of the estorean conquord

Paul Jhered exchequer of the Gatherers

Felice Koroyan chancellor, order of

the omniscient

Roberto Del Aglios ambassad or to sirrane

Arvan Vasselis marshal defender of caraduk

Katrin Mardov marshal defender of gestern

Megan Hanev marshal defender of atreska

Orin D'Allinnius chief scientist to the advocate

Marcus Gesteris senator

Tuline Del Aglios secretary to the consul general

Yuri Lianov harbour master of wystrial, gestern

Fleet Corvanov conquord messenger, wystrial, gestern

SOLDIERS AND SAILORS OF THE CONQUORD

Karl Iliev prime sea lord of the ocetanas

Kashilli lead marine, ocenii squad vii

Elise Kastenas marshal general of the armies

Pavel Nunan general, 2nd legion

Dina Kell general, znd legion

Adranis Del Actios master of horse, 2nd legion

Davarov general of the atreskan legions

Cartoganev master of horse, atreskan legions

CITIZENS AND OTHERS

Dahnishev master su rgeon, 2 nd legion

Julius Barias order speaker, 2nd legion

Harban-Qyist karku guide

Khuran king of tsard

Rhyn-Khur prince of tsard

Gorian Westfall en ascendant of the 9th strand

Kreysun prosentor, tsardon forces

Thomal Turan king of atreska

Chapter One

859th Cycle of God, 15th day of Dusasfall

It was the second time he had seen Icenga die.

The first time had been a fall. And through his magnifier Harban had seen the broken body and the stain of blood on the snow far below.

It was an unusual way for one of the Karku to die. Yet the body had gone by the time Harban had finished his descent and he had felt pure joy. No animal had taken Icenga. There were no drag marks but there was a single set of footprints leading into the maze of rocks. Hope flared within him.

Immediately, he had known it could not be. Icenga could not possibly have survived such a fall. Fear had settled on him. Glancing up at the surrounding mountains, he had seen the glint of sun on glass as a magnifier turned his way. Rock dust and grit fell from the same place.

And then he had heard the rasp of shoe on ice and had seen Icenga walking towards him. He was sure-footed, as he had always been. But every few paces he had staggered as if pain was shearing through his head and he had lost all coordination, able only to grip his skull hard with his hands.

Harban had stood mute, unable to offer assistance or to flee. Icenga had not fallen. The broken shaft of an arrow jutted from his ribs over his heart. Icenga had collapsed into his arms and the pair of them had sagged to the frozen ground. Harban had stroked the dead man's hair while he breathed his last once again. The confusion in Icenga's eyes had turned Harban's fear to pity. He had whispered words of comfort but none could possibly be adequate. He wasn't even sure if Icenga could hear him.

And then at the very end, Icenga's expression had cleared and words had issued from his mouth, bound to the sour taint of sick breath.

'You know what this means,' he had said, his voice a dry rasp. 'We all know.'

Dimly, Harban heard the beat of hoofs on stone and ice. The fear deepened then, bringing a shortening of his breath. Harban sat with Icenga in his arms until his body was numbed by the cold and all his prayers were spoken.

Only then did his mind begin to function. Harban looked around him. The carved marble memorial to the Conquord dead in the slaughter a decade past stood cracked and creeper-covered. It had once been a grand obelisk with the bust of Jorganesh, the fallen general, proud at its head. But through the creepers could be seen scrawled Tsardon insults and threats should the Conquord ever return this way. It was smeared with long-dried goat's blood and the nose of the general had been shorn away.

Dusas chill ran deep and abiding. A gale charged with ice howled along Lubjek's Defile, rustling the ivy on the memorial. Nothing else remained to mark the single worst defeat of Conquord forces during her war with Tsard. No bones remained, no onager stones sat among the leaves. Not even an arrowhead poked through. All long cleared by Atreska's impoverished southern peoples.

Harban had seen the immediate aftermath. The images still haunted his dreams and filled his prayers to the Heart of the Mountain. This was not a place any Karku, let alone Harban, would choose to come any more. Though the scorched trees had grown afresh and flowers would carpet the ground when genastro warmed the earth, it would forever be tainted.

Harban was on Kark's northern border with Atreska, there with Icenga because of the rumours that had now proved true. Icenga had not been the only one to perish this way. Others had been used. Testing a power that the Karku had feared down the long centuries of history but had never really believed would be made flesh. That it was being tested here and Harban could take back undeniable evidence was the realisation of the darkest of Karku fears.

Harban stood, Icenga's body limp in his arms, finally granted the peace he deserved. He began to walk back up the slope towards the passageway under the mountains. The deep rumble of a distant avalanche reverberated over him. He stopped and stared up at the white peaks above, many lost in dense grey cloud. Another portent giving credence to Icenga's words from beyond death?

'Perhaps we are already too late,' he said and moved on again.

There was a great deal to be done. Icenga had to be interred in the rock catacombs under the village of Yllin-Qvist where he had lived his whole life; a place from where he could never be reawakened again. And Harban had to speak with the guardians of Inthen-Gor, the Heart of the Mountain. They had to know what he had seen and determine whether the prophecy was coming to pass. And if it was, it would be Harban who would make the journey to seek the few who could save them.