Page 14 of The Neverfear

‘Really, Senan,’ said Irian. ‘You can’t go alone. Let me come—’

But Argus had already stepped forward. ‘Nighthand and Irian, you must stay with Teren. Senan, will you allow me to come with you? I know a little about medicine and I have plants that will help.’

Senan hesitated. ‘Are you sure? The waters are bad. The bandits—’

‘That’s why you mustn’t go alone. If you can give me ten minutes, I can be ready.’

‘Thank you, Argus. I can’t pretend I wouldn’t be glad of it.’

Anya said nothing, but she looked at her father very hard. It was only a few months ago that Anya had saved his life. She followed him as he ran to pack.

‘Let me come with you,’ said Anya.

In his large bedroom full of plants and seedlings, Argus took his daughter in his arms.

‘My darling girl. I know this is hard. But you’ll be safe – the Hercules thorn will protect you.’

‘The what?’

‘The fendthorn. Officially it’s Spina herculis. You’ve heard of the Twelve Labours of Hercules? The fendthorn was his secret thirteenth labour: to build a barrier that was practically unbreakable. From each of his twelve tasks, he took something to—’

‘You’re changing the subject on purpose! It’s not that I don’t want you to go – I know Senan can’t go alone.’ Her temper was slipping. ‘I want to come with you!’

‘To a burnt-out village where bandits might return any moment? You’re safer here than anywhere in the world.’

‘But you’re not listening! I’m not worried about me, I’m worried about you!’

Her face was like a dart, and he flinched. To Argus, his daughter still seemed very small. He would have been startled to know how much her love for him was like a lion’s. Parents rarely understand how fiercely their children wish to protect them.

‘Give me this as a gift, Anya,’ he said. ‘Come and wave me off.’

In less than an hour, Argus and Senan were gone. Christopher looked out over the water at the departing boat, and then at Teren. He reached down and took Teren’s hand.

‘We’ll keep you safe,’ he said.

A dangerous promise, as he should have known from experience.

Fury

Astor Morax’s rage was a black hole: it pulled all the air, all the light, from the red stone room.

Darius Alkov, captain of the Astorians, stood leaden and unmoving in the dusk and watched. He could not see Morax’s face, for the sun had set over the Manticores’ mountains, and for that he was glad. He had seen his master’s face only once unmasked and in full daylight, and that had been enough.

Two other men stood in front of Morax: one, young and wiry in the dimness, had a face like a shrew; the older man, Willis, had a mouth like a toad’s. Both wore bracelets of thin black snakes.

‘How did this happen?’ said Astor Morax. ‘I have had word from my spy in the City of Scholars that Glimt cannot now be reached. How did you not know about the fendthorn?’

The older man flinched, and began to stammer. ‘We’ve been interrogating the ratatoskas, Magister,’ he said, ‘but nobody knew they were growing fendthorn. Barely anybody knew that such a thing even existed! Forgive me, Magister, but how could we have known—?’

‘Quiet.’

Morax closed his eyes. A spasm passed over his face. Then he flicked one long white index finger, and the snake on Willis’s wrist snapped its head upwards.

Willis’s mouth opened in a scream as the snake struck. It fastened its jaws deep into the flesh of his wrist. He was dead before the scream had reached its natural end.

‘Ford,’ said Morax to the young, shrewlike man. ‘Take him away. Darius. Get me Petroc.’

The young man scuttled to obey.