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It was a stupid situation. It was also a waste of time to worry about it. The
thing to worry about for the time being was keeping his own head on his
shoulders. If he could do that long enough, perhaps he might be able to do
something for somebody else in Saram.
Chapter 8
The ride north across the plain toward the Emperor's castle took five days. On
the morning of the sixth day a haze of smoke and dust on the horizon ahead
told Blade that they were approaching another town.
It was not a town, but an army camp as large as a town. Thick clouds of black
smoke coiled up from a row of brick chimneys, telling of a large arsenal hard
at work. There were rows of wooden barracks with tile roofs stretching for
almost a mile, and numerous guns lined up outside the walls. All the lamer
guns were mounted on heavy sledges instead of wheels. Such guns would be
useful for knocking down the walls of a rebellious town or a rebellious
noble's castle, but in the field against fast-moving horsemen they would be
useless. In fact, they would slow down the movements of any army that tried to
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use them. In spite of this, they were all polished and painted and on display
like so many blooded horses.
Kul-Nam was obviously proud of them, whatever use he might expect to get out
of them.
The duke's party rode on past the camp without stopping or even approaching
the gates. A score of riders came out to join the duke's party as an escort-or
guard. From the riders' plump, hairless faces, Blade assumed they were from
the Corps of Eunuchs.
They looked like good soldiers. They rode well, and their weapons had the
appearance that comes with careful maintenance over many years. Their helmets
sat square and their armor fit well, with no odd pieces missing or laces
dangling. Their horses looked alert, tough, and well fed. Like most of the
other
Imperial soldiers Blade had seen, the Corps of Eunuchs would be formidable
opponents in battle. If
Kul-Nam's judgment had been as good as his soldiers, the Empire would have
been in no danger at all.
As it was, Saram had an army that was worthy of better leadership than they
were likely to get from their
Emperor.
The eunuchs divided into two lines and flanked the duke's party, one line on
each side. The camp vanished behind; the horizon ahead began to swell into a
range of green hills. After another half hour they were riding along a road
that wound through scattered estates, with whitewashed, tile-roofed houses
laid out around lush gardens and artificial lakes. The breezes that blew
across the road brought the smell of flowers and rich earth. They also brought
the smell of too many hard-worked, unwashed people crammed together in the
slave barracks behind each of the great houses.
At a crossroads stood a great pyramid of stone painted a glossy red, and on
top of the pyramid rose a heavy timber frame. The frame was studded with
spikes, and on each spike was stuck a human head.
Some were fresh -Blade saw the head of a young girl, no more than twelve, that
seemed still to wear an expression of agonized surprise. Others were
blackened, rotting masses of decay, eyes and tongues plucked out by carrion
birds, exuding foul stenches into the warm air. Still others were bare skulls,
with only a few shreds of sun-dried flesh adhering to the whitening bones, the
teeth bared in monstrous grins.
Gradually Blade realized that the road was taking them toward one hill in the
middle of the range.
Squarely on top of the hill sat an enormous castle. Its walls formed a perfect
circle nearly a mile in diameter. Twelve tall, round towers studded the wall,
and in the center four even taller ones rose in a square.
Every visible part of the castle was a dull black that sucked in all the light
and gave back none. It squatted uncompromisingly on the earth, seeming to
weigh it down, visible, defiant, and terrifying from many miles away. If Blade
had known nothing at all about the character of His Sublime Magnificence
Kul-Nam, the castle would have told him a good deal. He wondered how many
slaves had worked for how many years to raise it on that hilltop, and how many
of them had died before the final stone was set in place.
Closer up, Blade could see that another towered wall circled the base of the
hill, with several clusters of buildings just inside it. Duke Boros drew up
beside Blade and pointed.
"We will dismount at the base of the hill, report to the house master, disarm,
bathe, and don proper garb. Then we will wait for His Magnificence to summon
us to the House of Blood."
"That is the castle on top of the hill?"
The duke nodded. "His Magnificence Kul-Nam is not ashamed to be the slayer of
many he calls-of many enemies. So he calls his castles by such names as the
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House of Blood, the House of Death, the
House of the Sword, and so on. His principal castle is named the House of the
Eagle's Claw."
Boros hesitated, obviously reluctant to discuss the Empire's military strength
with Blade, even in the most general terms. Then he shook his head and
laughed. "It is no secret that the House of Blood is the strongest castle in
the land. It was finished only three years ago, after ten years of work by
five thousand men. The Emperor himself has boasted of its strength. With a
strong and well-furnished garrison, it could stand off an army of fifty
thousand for a year. The others are not quite as strong, but none of them
would be easy to storm, or quick to starve out."
"It was said even in England that Kul-Nam made it hard for his enemies to come
at him," said Blade. "I
see that what was said was true."
"Indeed it was," said the duke. "But here we are, coming to the gate. We would
do well to talk of this at another time and place, if we have the chance."
The preliminary formalities for a visit to the Emperor took several hours.
There were horses to be stabled, the fighters and servants to be assigned
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