Rael turned and offered the Vagar woman a slight bow. She was wearing a heavy cloak against the evening winds and she looked older, more tired than Rael had seen her. ‘I received your message,’ she said.
‘Best not to speak of it, for the reasons I wrote in my letter.’
She nodded. ‘There are two thousand militia men to call upon in this district,’ she told him. ‘I have assigned runners to every two hundred yards of the wall. If any of your officers need reinforcements the runners will fetch them.’
‘You have worked well and efficiently, Mejana. I commend you,’ said Rael absently. Once more he was staring out at the low-lying hills.
Mejana leaned against the battlements and closed her eyes in exhaustion. For the first time Rael saw her not as the leader of the murderous Pajists, but as a woman, weary and bereaved, doing her best in an impossible situation.
Taking a crystal from his pouch he reached out to her. She opened her eyes and backed away. ‘I don’t want your damned magic!’ she said.
Rael sighed. ‘I understand. But you will need all your wits about you, lady, in the hours and days ahead.’
‘That might be so, Rael. But I will do my best in this frail, aching body. It is mine. Its strength is mine and its weakness also. All mine. But I thank you for your offer, and hope you will excuse my sharpness of tone.’
Her words surprised him. He leaned forward, placing his hand on her shoulder. ‘Perhaps the coming excitement will help to revitalize you. But, failing that, I suggest you go home and sleep for a couple of hours. Even when they come it will take time to set up their battle lines and their weapons. I shall send a messenger for you.’
‘No,’ she said. ‘Already I am feeling a little better. Would you mind if I wait?’
‘Not at all.’ Turning away from her he slipped the crystal back into his pouch. He caught Cation’s eye and knew the officer had picked up the emanations from the crystal use. Rael smiled at his aide. The signal lights flashed again from Pagaru. Rael missed the first part of the message but caught it when it was repeated moments later. From their vantage point across the estuary the Pagaru defenders could see the army approaching Egaru.
‘Many wagons,’ said Cation. ‘Mounted bronze? What does that mean?’
‘Bronze weapons are mounted on the wagons,’ said Rael. ‘Signal back. Ask how many they can see.’
Cation moved away. Mejana touched Rael’s arm and pointed to the east. The first line of marching men could be seen silhouetted against the skyline. Mejana glanced along the wall then looked back at Rael. ‘You cannot hold a two-mile wall with two thousand men.’
‘No, I cannot,’ he agreed. ‘But they cannot destroy the whole wall. Where they breach it is where the hard fighting will be.’
Hearing movement behind him Rael turned to see Caprishan climbing to the ramparts. The fat man was breathing heavily and his face was sweat-drenched. ‘Did you get through to Anu?’ asked Rael.
Caprishan nodded, then took a moment to catch his breath. ‘We shouldn’t have,’ he said at last. ‘We were seen by a group of Almecs. A large group, maybe two hundred strong. I thought we would all be killed. But they drew back, offering us no harm. What do you make of that, Rael? It makes no sense to me.’
‘Nor me,’ said Mejana.
‘It makes perfect sense,’ said Rael bitterly. ‘Think of what Anu is doing. He is recreating the White Pyramid. It will draw power from the sun and feed all our crystals. As Sofarita has told us, the Crystal Queen has an insatiable hunger. A great need. Once the pyramid is complete she will feed from that.’
‘Then we must stop Anu,’ said Mejana. ‘He must not complete it.’
‘I couldn’t stop Anu even if I wanted to,’ said Rael. ‘But there will be no more supplies to him now and no way to contact him. That is why he requested the second chest. He will feed his workers with crystal power. He is cut off from us, Mejana. We can only hope to defeat the Almecs before he completes the pyramid.’