‘Yes, and arrived back before us,’ continued Finn.
The four men stood. Chareos doused the fire and they set off through the snow.
*
In the cabin Okas opened his eyes. ‘They come,’ he said.
‘I had begun to give up hope,’ replied Kiall. ‘Twelve days is a long time to be trapped in that jungle.’
Okas chuckled. ‘They left before we did. But I know how to use the Gate.’ He stood and stretched. A small man, no more than five feet tall, he was round-shouldered and pot-bellied. He could have been any age from sixty to a hundred, and looked as if a stiff breeze could snap his bones. Yet he had walked through the snow clad only in a loin-cloth and had appeared to suffer no discomfort, neither through cold nor exhaustion. And he left barely a print on the snow, as if his weight was no more than that of a bird. He looked up at Kiall. ‘So tell me all you know about the Great Khan.’
‘Why are you interested? I don’t understand,’ said Kiall.
‘I was here when he led his armies into Drenai lands,’ Okas told him. ‘And again when they marched against Bel-azar. Strong man, the Khan. Great man, perhaps. But he is dead, yes?’
‘I don’t know much about him. He conquered the Drenai and the Vagrians. He died some years ago; he is buried in the tomb of Ulric.’
‘No, he is not,’ said Okas. ‘He is buried in an unmarked grave. But I know where it is. How did he die?’
‘I do not know. His heart gave out, I would suppose. That is how most people die – even kings. Are you sure Chareos is coming?’
Okas nodded. He poured himself a goblet of water. ‘I sent them a message. They come. Fat Beltzer is disappointed. He wanted to go back through to the jungle to find you – and to be rich. Fat Beltzer always wanted to be rich.’
‘He is your friend?’
‘All men are my friends,’ said Okas. ‘We are all of the Dream. But, yes, I like very much fat Beltzer.’
‘Why? What is there to like?’ Kiall asked.
‘Ask me again in half a year. I will sleep now. I am older than I look.’
Kiall thought that barely credible, but he said nothing. Okas sat down before the fire, crossed his arms and slept upright. Kiall blew out the lantern and lay back on the bed by the wall.
The others were coming. The search for Ravenna was under way.
He slept without dreams.
*
It was a further two days before the exhausted travellers reached the sanctuary of the cabin. Beltzer was the first inside. He hoisted Okas into a bear-hug and spun him round until the little man laughed delightedly. ‘How come you still live, fat man?’ he asked. ‘How come no one kill you yet?’
‘They do keep trying,’ replied Beltzer. He put the old man down and stared closely at his wrinkled skin and rheumy eyes. ‘By the Source, you look all but dead yourself.’
‘Soon,’ said Okas, smiling. ‘The Dream calls. But I will stay a little while with my old friends.’ He turned to Chareos, who had shed his ice-covered cloak and was stripping his wet clothes from him and standing before the fire shivering. ‘You and I, we speak,’ Okas said. ‘Back room good place.’
‘This minute?’
‘Yes,’ answered Okas, moving through to the workshop. Chareos pulled a fresh tunic from his pack and dressed, then he walked to where Okas waited. The old man reached out and took his hand, holding it firmly for several seconds. ‘Sit down,’ he ordered, ‘and tell me of quest.’
Chareos explained about the raid on the village, and Kiall’s love for Ravenna. The others are coming along for different reasons. Beltzer is a lost soul, down from the mountain. Finn fears his death will leave Maggrig alone.’
‘And you?’
‘Me? I have nothing better to do with my life.’
‘Is that true, Chareos? Do you not carry a dream?’
‘Another man’s dream. It was never my own.’
Okas clambered up on the edge of the work-bench, and sat down, his short legs dangling less than half-way to the floor. He looked closely at Chareos. ‘Not your dream, you say. So, you also do not understand nature of this quest, nor where it take you. Tell me of Tenaka Khan, and gate-tower night.’