ambor yawned and stretched, knuckling the sleep from his eyes as he sat up and looked out the back of the wagon.  The view was the same as it had been for the last few days; endless rolling hills of long green grass, with occasional low stone walls visible running off towards the foothills to the South and East.  Boring.

He rolled over and scrambled up towards the front of the wagon, climbing up to sit on the bench next to Tugg, his father, who was half asleep himself, the reins to their four-horse team clenched in one massive fist.  Looking to the right, Tambor saw his mother Saraha, seated on Maralsa, her white gelding.  Saraha wore silver light plate and a metal helm, and was fully-armed, with her war bow slung over her back, and a thick quiver of throwing javelins sticking out of her saddle bag.  She looked over and gave him a quick wave, then turned her attention back to the hills to the right of the road.  There was a very thick forest several leagues away, and after peering at it for a few minutes, Tambor could tell there was a party of horsemen just inside the forest, trying to stay out of sight as they paced the wagon on the little-used road.

After a moment Tugg roused himself fully and clapped his son on the shoulder, "Tambor smell them too?  Men on horses not wash very often.  Must be patrol coming home from weeks riding outer borders."

Tambor heard the slight note of concern in his father's voice, and felt a bit of excitement.  He knew his mother and father could handle any attackers short of an army, especially a pack of the poorly-trained failed knights that patrolled these borderlands.  In fact, Tambor wouldn't have minded a confrontation, he was heartily bored by the wagon trip, now stretching into its sixth day.  He wanted to visit his older brother, Torok, at the Paladin Academy, but that didn't mean he had to like the ride there.

It would have been much more fun, and faster too, if they'd just ridden horses and camped out at night, but his sister Semla had broken her leg during the summer while trying to catch a deer bare-handed, and while she could hop around in her splint, she couldn't ride a horse yet.  So she sat in the wagon, and was terrible company, usually silent as she read book after book, glaring at him if he made noise or tried to talk to her.  Besides his sister's leg, they needed the wagon for all the cargo they were bringing.  There was a chest full of magical weapons and armor for Torok.  Most of it was much too heavy for Tambor to use yet, but he figured his brother would be nearly full grown now, so he's wield it all with ease.  The wagon was also needed, as his sister had told him about fifty times, to carry the good they'd be buying and bring home with them. Saraha was very resourceful, but there were manufactured goods things she couldn't make from scratch, and Tugg had no time to set up a forge at their home.

Tambor looked over his shoulder, back into the wagon, and looked at Semla, only the side of her face visible over the huge book she was reading.  Her lips moved silently as she committed another arcane code to memory. Semla didn't glance at him, but Tambor knew she was aware of his stare.  She might spend all her time studying sorcery now, but she'd had years of training in combat, and never missed anything that was happening around her.  That bothered Tambor too, it wasn't fair that she was older, studied magic, and was better at combat than he was.

Tambor turned his attention back to the front of the wagon, as Tugg slapped the reins, spurring the team to a slightly faster pace.  "Just one more day Tambor, then we there.  Tugg tired of dusty road too."

"Papa, do you think the riders will come talk to us?"

Tugg looked off to the right for a moment before replying.  "They just watch, wonder what we do here.  Think we another beggar family driven from village by monster raids!"  He laughed, and Tambor smiled too.  The idea of some motley band of Fallen or pack of shambling zombies driving them from their home was absurd.  "But," Tugg continued, "they see six healthy horses and new wagon, see armor on Tugg and Saraha, and no beggar family has those.  Maybe they think they could steal from us.  Hah!  Tugg think they take good look, then ride on to city, talk to Soldier at Arms.  We meet them tomorrow."

Tambor sat at his father's side for the next few hours, as the morning turned to afternoon.  They ate some meat left from last night's dinner, and talked of the Tribes, but Tambor mostly watched his mother ride.  She handed her horse as though it was an extension of her body, riding effortlessly as she ranged over the hills and through the fields to each side of the wagon.  Saraha scouted ahead, but mostly stayed over to the right, between the wagon and the trees, with their mostly-unseen watchers.  That the men paced them for so long seemed odd to Tambor, since a few minutes was enough to get a good look.

The weather was pleasant, a hint of winter chill in the air, but still warm enough for wearing light clothing.  He had to wear warmer hides and heavy boots in the winter, especially in the show, and envied his father's ability to plow through waist-deep snow in nothing more than light boots, but knew he'd have that sort of Natural Resistance some day.  His mother was very hard as well, toughened by years of rough living.

This was Tugg's favorite time of year, both for the weather and also for Hallow's Eve, which was just a week away.  Two years ago he'd had the best Hallow's Eve ever, when they visited Rottenstone, the town nearest their wilderness home, and from there walked to the haunted castle of the Necromancer.

Unfortunately they hadn't gone out the next year, since there was no where to go.  Over the winter a massive horde of Fallen had overrun Rottenstone, killing or driving off every single person there, and burning all the buildings to the ground.  The monsters had tried to do the same to Tugg and Saraha's home, but had paid for their attempt by the hundreds.  Tambor remembered the battle with a smile. It had gone on for hours, with his parents and sister slaughtering the Fallen warriors, only to have them constantly resurrected by the dozens of Shaman Fallen who hung behind them.  Tambor had killed dozens himself, mostly ones that staggered too close the house, wounded already by Tugg's axe or Saraha's arrows.

Finally Saraha had climbed up onto their roof and used her largest javelins to throw over the masses of Fallen, striking several of the Shaman and setting off huge bursts of lightning in their ranks, felling dozens.  The Fallen Warriors were nothing, completely expendable, but the Shaman ruled, and they could not resurrect each other.  The attack was called off and the motley army moved away, leaving hundreds of their dead behind to freeze into snow drifts.  It appeared they'd taken out their anger at failing on Rottenstone, and Tugg hadn't seen it, but he'd heard his parents talking about the dozens of human skulls left on pikes in the center of what had been the town.

Rottenstone hadn't had any good Treats anyway, in Tambor's opinion, so no real loss there, since the people had been weak. He deeply missed the haunted castle though.  A month or so before Hallow's Eve, half a year after the Fallen army had leveled Rottenstone, the family had heard massive explosions, and seen the lights in the sky.  The next day they all went out to see what had happened, and headed straight for the haunted castle.  On the way there they walked through many burned sections of forest, and noted huge chunks of stone, many of them parts of walls and rooms, the stones still mortared together.

Tambor couldn't imagine the explosion it would take to hurl walls of rock miles over the forest, and heat them so hot that they could start fires where they landed.  Even Tugg and Saraha had never heard of such a thing.  Despite this, Tambor had hoped the castle was somehow still standing, as he was eagerly awaiting another Hallow's Eve visit.

When they reached the deep gorge that stood just before the castle, he'd almost cried to see it.  All was in ruin.

The entire castle was leveled, the great tower toppled, the bridge across the deep canyon fallen from sight.  It appeared that something had exploded inside of the castle, deep beneath it, and blow up through the many floors, tearing the roof off entirely.  The outer walls remained, though many were fallen, but the entire middle was a massive, smoking hole, with huge piles of stones still smoldering. No undead could be seen moving, though there were many large skeletons and zombies, as well as strange, black monstrous forms littering the outer courtyard.

Saraha told them that such creatures were tied to the Necromancer who raised them, and that they could only remain reanimated as long as the Necromancer willed it. If the Necromancer died, all of his creatures fell down and moved no more.  Tambor figured the Necromancer who had been such a great host last year must have been killed in the explosion.

Remembering the extensive laboratory they'd seen in the castle's dungeon, Tambor could imagine the Necromancer had blown himself up with his dark alchemy.  It had been a sad walk home, and a sad Hallow's Eve that year, with no one to go and get Treats from.  Tugg and Saraha had helped him dress up in shiny plate mail and pretend to be a Paladin, and he'd had some fun, and Saraha had made some very nice Treats, but after the year before, it had been a let down.

Now a year later, riding in the wagon for the past week had given Tambor much time to think and hope this year would be better. He didn't know what the customs were in this land, but at least there were people here, so perhaps he could get some Treats.

Tambor looked up from his thoughts and took in the grassy plains still stretching off in all directions. He sighed, of course there was nothing to see.  At least they were nearer the forest, which sloped down the hills and met the road some miles ahead. Tambor knew the road moved through thick woods for several miles before the way cleared and grew stonier, as it moved uphill towards the city (or perhaps large town) of Khadray.  Several leagues on the other side of Khadray was their destination, the Paladin Monastery where his brother was training.

Torok had been there for almost four years now, and Tambor wondered how his brother would look and act.  Tambor had only seen a few Paladins two years ago when they passed through Khadray and left Torok at the academy, and he'd been impressed, but far from awed.  The Paladins were proud, noble men in their shining plate mail, and they'd seemed fair enough, though not very talkative. His older brother had always been quiet and very intense, concentrating on whatever lessons their parents taught him with his full force, so Tambor thought he'd make a good Paladin, since they had to study much to learn how to properly focus and maintain their Auras, and complicated combat skills.

Torok had been taller than any of the senior Paladins then, several years ago, even at just the age of 14.  Adults were always saying he'd be a giant when full grown, large even for a Barbarian.  Tugg was a massive man, but it looked like his son would surpass even him. Tambor wondered if the Paladins had any armor that would fit him by now.

His older brother was the first child born to Tugg and Saraha, and had been a typical Barbarian baby; sturdy and active from a very young age. As large and strong as any of the other children of the Tribes, he'd been rough and tumble, but from his earliest weapons training he'd always shown a preference for fighting with a sword or mace with a shield.  He was manifesting Auras for short periods by age 6, and it was obvious to all that he was a born Paladin.  Saraha's Grandfather had been a full-blooded Paladin, and even though Torok had more Amazon and Barbarian blood in him, it was clear whose natural abilities he'd inherited.

Tambor knew his parents had discussed taking Torok away from the Tribes' lands, taking him to an academy where he could get proper Paladin training, and when a plague swept over the Barbarian villages, almost killing Tambor, Tugg and Saraha decided to move away for some years while their children grew up.  They could find a Paladin academy for Torok as well, since he should get specialized training while he was still young enough to learn quickly.

Leaving the Tribeslands had been sad, but the Barbarians were a nomadic people, and very independent, so families traveling long distances alone was not unusual.  Tambor didn't remember the trip that well, since he'd been so young, and his parents didn't talk about it much, unlike their stories of his older brother's youth.  He did know that they'd all traveled for months, moving from the wilderness North into more civilized lands, as they searched for a place to settle, and a quality academy for Torok to enroll in.

Tambor knew from his sister that the Paladins at the academy had been very skeptical of the huge Torok and his desire to receiving training, especially after seeing that his father was a true Barbarian.  They'd had test after test for Torok, but finally seeing that he could already manifest auras, and was extremely skilled with weapons, they had accepted the chest of gold Tugg forced on them and taken Torok in.  The gold was for room and board and training, but Tambor thought it was far more than the usual price.  He knew his parents had quite a fortune though, from their years of adventuring before starting a family.

That had been about two and a half years ago, and Tambor was eager to see his brother again, to see how he had progressed in his training, and what he was like now.  The full training to become a Paladin took many years, he'd been told many times by his parents, so there was no way Torok was wearing plate mail and channeling some of the high level auras Tambor had heard of, yet.  But he wanted to see anyway.

Saraha had told him that Paladin training was not all combat and Auras, that there was extensive book-learning also, history and many more subjects.  There was even religious training, for the Paladins were devout in their Holy Zakarum faith. Tambor had heard his parents worrying if Torok would become foolish and reject the ways of nature he'd learned as a child, but Tambor didn't think that would happen. Torok would be the same brother he'd always been, just with some new skills.

____________________

Around dark the horsemen rode off, never leaving the woods, but not doing a very good job hiding their presence from the skilled observers in the wagon.  During the afternoon Saraha had switched places with her husband, and Tugg was now riding scout on his brown stallion Merkan.  Merkan was the largest horse Tambor had ever seen, and the proud beast did not care for pacing along on his tether while Tugg drove the wagon.  Once he was saddled and Tugg was mounted, they were off like a bolt, galloping off the road and leaping over a high stone wall and vanishing from sight.  A while later Tugg appeared from the edge of the forest, two deer slung over his saddle, and as it was growing dark, they stopped for the night, just short of the forest.

Nothing disturbed them during the night (Tugg set numerous traps and wards around their wagon and campsite.) and the family was up early in the morning and on their way before the sun was fully over the horizon.  The forest was just as boring as the road, with nothing moving other than some small animals, and around noon they were through it, and rode through several small towns as they moved up hill, heading towards Khadray.  The few peasants they saw by the road gave them suspicious looks, but no words were exchanged.

It was early afternoon when they reached the outskirts of Khadray, and followed the main road into town.  Both their riding horses were tethered close to the read of the wagon, and Tugg and Saraha sat up on the high seat, wearing light armor.  They didn't expect any trouble in this large a town, so weren't in their heaviest gear, but they were sure to keep their weapons handy and in plain sight.  There were steep cliffs and many rock quarries around both sides of the town, and no good roads though them, so the only way to the Paladin Academy was to go through Khadray.  Tambor was eager to see it, the largest town he'd visited in years, but his excitement soon turned to disappointment.

Khadray had seen better days.  Tambor didn't remember exactly what it was like years before, when they'd moved through with Torok, but he was sure it had been cleaner.  Now there was garbage choking most of the alleys, and the people looked a very ill-sort.  No women were anywhere to be seen, and the men lacked industry, lounging around on corners and standing outside of taverns, staring at the wagon as it moved past.  Most of the men were on foot, and the few riding had terrible horseflesh beneath them. Tambor thought the worst of the horses pulling the wagon he rode in could have bested any of the nags in town.

Many of the men, and nearly all of the ones with horses, had badly-scarred faces, the wounds old and healed.  Quite a few were missing an eye, but none wore a patch, leaving the gory sockets uncovered for all to see.  Tambor looked on in uneasy fascination.  Tugg had told him on the trip here that such men in this land were not to be spoken to or trusted, for their scars and one missing eye was a sign they'd failed a crucial test in their Paladin training, or betrayed the Zakarum religion, and been branded and cast out. Such men tended to band together, and very seldom turned to honest work.

Tambor and his sister watched through the peep holes in the back of their wagon, moving from the front to the sides to the back to get better looks at the sights.  Their wagon was very secure and durable, built of thick wooden boards with iron bands for strength.  It had a rear door that opened wide, and a roof panel that swung back to let in sunlight as well as the front window.  For most of their trip these had been open, but since this morning they'd been closed and locked.  Tugg had fastened everything securely that morning, and double-checked all the locks this morning before they entered the woods.

Their parents had told Tambor and Semla to stay inside and out of sight, and for children so often given freedom and trusted to take care of themselves, this warning made things seem very serious.

Semla whispered to Tambor as they watched four scarred men stare at the passing wagon from a saloon, "These people are scum.  Fallen Paladins, or ones who never had the guts or skill to enter the Academy in the first place.  Their mayor is corrupt; the half brother of one of the leaders of the Paladins, and the city guard are all thieves and brigands.  The Duke of this region is said to be a mad man, consumed with bloodlust but cowardly in battle.  He rules through torture of his enemies and dissidents.  Only by paying heavy taxes are the cities spared his wrath."

She continued, with revulsion in her voice, "These people hate and fear Amazons and Barbarians.  They know themselves to be weak and spineless in combat, unable to survive in the wild, so they resent those who can, and tell lies about the Tribes and the Maidens."  Tambor had no idea where his sister got this information from, and thought she was exaggerating a bit, but he could see that most every person they passed on the street looked after their wagon with less than friendly expressions.

Near the far side of town they passed a public square, and witnessed a horrible scene. There was a huge stone stage, about head height up from the dusty ground, and on it stood five stocks.  Tambor had never seen such things, but he'd heard of them.  These were wooden contraptions with three holes, one for the head and two for the hands, where criminals were chained and left for hours or days, depending on their crime.  The public humiliation and opportunity for mob violence was the main means of punishment, though some criminals were whipped in them, or even left to die.  There was a small crowd around the stocks now, but most of them turned away from them to stare at the wagon as it moved by.

Only two of the stocks were in use, and both held naked women with long black hair, perhaps once glossy and beautiful, but now tangled and stringy.  Both had their eyes put out and gags in their mouths, and their bloody, contorted faces poked through the stocks towards the road, in plain view of Tambor and Semla in the wagon.  Both women were covered with wounds, small cuts and burns, and they knelt in pools of their own blood.  Even as they passed by the stage, a man in a black hood lifted two glowing red irons from a small forge, and pressed them into the bare flesh of the women. One of them appeared to be dead, for she remained motionless, but the other was still alive to suffer, and writhed in agony at the torture.

There was a large sign on the edge of the stone stage, but Tambor couldn't read the writing.  He whispered to Semla, asking what it said, and she gazed fixedly at the scene as they passed, until suddenly gasping and falling back from the side of the wagon, where she and Tambor had been peering out small holes.

Tambor looked at his sister, and even in the dim light in the back of the wagon, he could see the horror on her face.  He'd never seen his sister so upset, and dropped down next to her.  "What did it say, Semla?  Who were the women?"

She didn't answer for a moment, then in a low voice, "It said, 'Die Eastern Witches'. They were sorceresses, being tortured to death for no crime other than their class."

Tambor looked at his sister, with her long blonde hair (She'd given up dying it black; though she wanted to be a Sorceress and look the part, her light hair was too much trouble to color every week.) and muscular body from all of her combat training and hunting, and was glad that she didn't look like the Sorceress she was well on her way to becoming, even though he knew their parents would never let anyone put her in a stocks.

An hour later they were well clear of the filthy hole that Khadray had become, and Tugg took the reins while Saraha opened the front of the wagon and dropped down by the children.

"Semla, be sure you keep your books well hidden.  You and Tambor," Here she fixed her son with a very stern look, "must not mention anything about any Sorcery studies to anyone.  Not Torok, and especially not any of his Paladin teachers!"

"Not even Torok?" asked Semla.  Tambor knew she'd been eager to talk to her brother, since he had also followed a class different than their parents.

Saraha sighed, and said, "Not at first, Semla.  He is your brother, but from the looks of that town, and banners posted on stores and the stocks, Sorcery is thought to be very evil here.  Torok has been here for more than three years, and we don't know how much of what they say he believes. I can't think he would betray his family, but he might make the wrong remark to someone."

Saraha took a deep breath and continued, "You saw how few watched the executions, and that no women were in town?  Women are in danger here, and so many have been killed as witches that men keep their wives hidden away, and the mob hardly even cares to see another pair executed.  I doubt any are even Sorceresses, perhaps village witches at best, dealing in charms and potions, or just women with an evil enemy to accuse them.  Something horrible has happened; some evil force has come into power in this land.  We must be very cautious, and I think we will take your brother away from this place."

Neither Tambor or Semla spoke as they absorbed this grim news.

Semla was horrified by this turn of events.  She knew that many people distrusted and feared mages, after all her own mother had been very set against her daughter's interest in sorcery, though she'd come around and supported Semla's studies now.  But to torture and murder any women suspected of magecraft?  This town had been peaceful just a few years ago.  What could have happened to change them so?  She desperately hoped the Paladins weren't like the stupid townsfolk.

The wagon passed out of town without further incident, and Saraha helped Semla hide all of her books in their lock chest, beneath the magical armor and weapons they were bringing for Torok.  Saraha removed her and Tugg's heaviest enchanted armor from storage, and laid it out ready to wear, as well as strapping Semla and Tugg into their armor.  Weapons were readied as well, but left inside the wagon, for now.

____________________

Two hours passed as they moved at a trot away from the town.  Saraha and Tugg had donned their heaviest armor, and strapped Tambor and Semla into theirs as well.  Weapons were readied and kept close at hand, though out of sight from any observer on the road. Semla couldn't fight well with her leg still too weak to stand on, but she could kneel and fire her bow with tremendous accuracy.  Tambor was fierce, larger than most boys half again his age, but at just eight years old he was not yet a match for any competent adult warrior.

Saraha was in the back again, sorting through their provisions when Tugg spoke over his shoulder from the front.  "Men in road." 

Saraha closed the chests and leaped up and out to the wagon seat, and Tambor and Semla moved to the front of the wagon, peering through cracks in the wood.  They looked over the backs of their horses, and as Tugg slowed the team, Tambor counted eleven men ahead.  They were all mounted on more of the poor-quality horseflesh he'd seen in town, and stood across the road, ten-wide.  Their leader was slightly ahead of the rest, his horse standing in the middle of the narrow and rough dirt path. There was no way around them, huge boulders off to both sides would have stopped the wagon immediately.

The men were all well-armed, with long swords at their sides, large shields slung across their backs, and throwing spears tied to the sides of their horses.  All wore heavy chain mail with red tunics over them, and a black eagle on their chests. Eight of them had deep scars down their faces, from forehead across the nose, then continuing down the other cheek and off the chin, and five were missing an eye from the scar, including the leader.

Tambor thought them a sorry sight.  He knew his mother could have dropped the lot of them in an instant with her bow, and his father could have sent them all running with a few Warcries.

Tugg spoke over his shoulder as the wagon drew near the men.  "Tambor!  Semla!  Not a word!  We not fight unless we have to, might cause trouble for Torok."

With the wagon stopped, the men in the road waited a moment, clearly expecting Tugg to ask them to move.  They didn't know much of Barbarians, Tambor thought.  Tugg sat silently on the high wagon seat, letting the rabble get a good look at his fierce grin, shaved head, gleaming plate mail, and the axe at his side, its blade wide enough to cleave an ox.  Saraha kept her silence too, one hand holding her great bow upright.  The bow was taller than most men, her arrows nearly as long as throwing spears, and she could fire up to half a dozen of them at once, with deadly accuracy.

Several minutes passed in silence, with the men on horses looking steadily more nervous.  Finally their leader spoke. "State your business, Barbarian." He said with a guttural accent, trying to put a snarl into his words.

"Son training for Paladin.  We visit." Tugg replied, in his deep voice.  Several of the men on horses looked a bit uneasy at his words, as well as the voice he delivered them in. Their leader's scowl deepened.

"A paladin son for a Barbarian?  Hah, who was the real father?"  He leered at Saraha as he spoke.

Semla gasped quietly, and Tambor was amazed as well.  Such rudeness was unheard of in the Tribes, and he half expected Tugg to bound off of the wagon and send the man's head rolling into the weeds beside the road.

Tugg just laughed though, glaring down at the man.  Saraha spoke in her clear voice, without anger. "My grandfather was a full blooded Paladin, and my first son took after him."

One of the scarred men behind the leader shouted over her last few words, "No one told you to speak, bitch!"

Their leader added, "Women may not speak in this land without a man's leave.  We don't tolerate witches or sorcery, and we don't much care for Amazon whores either.  Half-witches some say, with their spells, weak though they might be."

Semla cursed under her breath, and Tambor just stared, amazed.  Were these men mad, insulting their betters, while wielding their toy weapons and worthless armor?

As soon as the leader's last word was out of his mouth, the first man who had cursed Saraha fell off his horse backwards, landing with a crash.  His helmet rolled down the road behind him, the front completely caved in.  The leader of the men reacted an instant later, giving a short gasp of pain and doubling over.  He clung to the pommel of his horse for a moment, but soon lost his grip, crashing to the ground where he flopped over, the throwing axe that had struck him released from his grasp.

Tugg held up his stack of throwing axes, making sure the men all saw them.  Tambor looked up at his father's back through the open wagon window, and noticed that Tugg held the weapons backwards.  He'd thrown them that way to knock the men down, rather than killing.

The remaining nine horsemen drew their swords and several raised their shields, but none advanced. None of them had even see the Barbarian move, and now two of their comrades were down, including their leader.  The leader made a sound like a sick dog, but managed to heave himself to his feet, by taking hold of his saddle.  He groped for, and after a moment managed to lift his spear from his saddle tie, but as he turned to face the wagon, two arrows suddenly appeared in the spear's handle, splitting the wooden staff and knocking it from his grasp.

Saraha kept the bow pulled, four arrows in her grip, ready to let fly at once.  "Any of you other dog's cocks have any problem with me speaking when I so desire?"

The sound of heavy hoof beats from a side path grew suddenly loud enough for all to hear, and a moment later a full company of Paladins galloped into sight from the trees to the right.  There were twenty of them, all in gleaming plate mail, all mounted on white horses.   Their leader rode up next to the horseman, his shield glowing with a holy cross and held high in front of him, a blue aura glowing beneath his horse's feet.  There were several crackling and echoing noises as other Paladins activated their auras and Holy Shields, their attention mostly on the Barbarian and Amazon on the wagon, but they were regarding the horsemen in the road with suspicion as well.

"What is this?" The Paladin leader roared.

None of the men in the road spoke, and their leader didn't look like he had yet gotten enough wind back to speak if he'd wanted to.

Tugg filled the silence, "Tugg and family come to visit son in Paladin training.  Black eagle boys block road and insult wife, we teach some manners."

The leader of the Paladin brigade gave a short laugh, blowing out his long mustache, and turned to the leader of the Black Eagle horsemen.  "Well Nicodaemus, you picked the wrong woman today.  Don't you know a trained Barbarian and Amazon can rout your lot?  Back on your nag and away from the Monastery!"

The Black Eagle men didn't speak, and didn't even look at the Paladins, instead directing their angry stares at Tugg and Saraha.  Nicodaemus managed to drag himself into his saddle, leaving his ruined spear on the ground.  Two of the other Black Eagles lifted their unconscious comrade to his horse, laid him over the saddle on his belly and rode off next to him, one holding a fistful of his tunic at the scruff of his next, keeping him from sliding off the side.

As they vanished over a rise to the West, heading back towards the town, the Paladin leader spoke.  "You must be Torok's parents.  He's taking after his father, I can see.  You are welcome to visit him at the Academy, your son is progressing excellently in his studies, and has indeed earned the right to visitors."

Tugg and Saraha thanked him and lowered their weapons, and it was all Tambor could do to keep from shouting for joy.  These Paladins were not at all what he'd feared!

Part Two -->

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