The Endless Circle - Chapter 15: The Feasting-Hall

"In the middle place sat the Baron, champing on his food
as spit and juices dribbled down his chin."

As the soldiers rode away from the hollow in the forest Father’s only thought was of Banac. He was proud of his boy, proud that he had found him, that he had dared to come after him in the first place. But mingled with the pride was fear, and shame: he should never have allowed Banac to get involved in this.

He tried to comfort himself. Haemel was there, Haemel would be with him. If there was anyone in the world he would trust with Banac’s life it was Haemel.

He offered up a prayer to Cafan that they would be kept safe and brought out alive. But even as he formed the words in his mind he felt the same doubt that had come to him when he had seen the soldiers on the beach and the look of fear in his wife’s eyes. When the test had come, when the world had intruded on his faith, his faith had wavered, and now he trusted more in Haemel than he ever had in Cafan.

The Endless Circle - Chapter 14: Escape

"The beremer’s eyes snapped open ..."

The beremer was still unconscious, lying with his head back and his neck exposed, his eyes shut fast. Banac hissed at him and patted his face once or twice, all the time keeping half an eye on the galac-men as they busied themselves quenching the flames. But his efforts had no effect, and time was running out.

Quickly he picked up the sword and started sawing at the ropes. The blade was sharp, and though the ropes were thick and tightly knotted they soon fell away in limp coils. Banac looked up, his heart skipping a beat as he saw how much the smoke had cleared. The galac-men had brought the fire under control, and some of them were beginning to stand back and re-organise themselves.

He looked back down at the the beremer: he was as comatose as ever, his limbs limp and heavy. A quick glance over his shoulder showed Banac the way to the trees was still clear. He made up his mind.

The Endless Circle - Chapter 13: Sunlight

"... dark shadows of hooded men pacing round the clearing ..."

When he was sure the soldiers had gone, and the wood was silent once more, Banac rose shakily to his feet and scrambled back up the bank. Balor would still be waiting for him, alone and probably terrified out of his wits. He retraced his steps back to the tree where he had left Balor; but when he reached it his stomach knotted in alarm. The place was deserted. Balor was gone.

Panic gripped him, and for a horrible moment he imagined that Balor had been found and taken away along with the beremer. Then a hiss came from near his feet, and someone whispered his name:

“Banac? Is that you?”

The Endless Circle - Chapter 12: Rescue

"It would only be a matter of seconds to untie Father’s cords ..."

Banac crouched low as he made his way towards the torches. He felt energised. No longer were they lost or aimless. He had a fresh purpose now, a mission to accomplish. He tried to think like a hero, and moved as silently as he could.

When he was close enough to the torches to feel the heat of the flames he dropped to his belly and wormed his way past them, squirming along the ground until he could look out into the camp beyond.

As his eyes adjusted to the light he saw that he was lying just above head-height on the lip of a steep bank that dropped into a wide semi-circular depression, a dark clearing dotted with figures and firelight. It was hard to make out details, but he could see horses tied on one side, and a number of camp fires here and there. About ten feet to his left a small group of figures was huddled around a fire. He lay still and tried to hear what they were saying.

The Endless Circle - Chapter 11: The Song

"... trees loomed ahead in the flickering torch-light,
hunched into twisted forms ..."

They followed a faint track down the hill, winding back and forth through knee-high gorse. At the bottom of the hill lay the edge of the wood, little more than an inky shadow under the burning sky. Banac went in front, knocking aside the thickest of the scrub with a stick; Balor followed patiently, pausing when his brother paused and walking where he walked.

They did not speak, but their silences were for different reasons. Banac was planning the next steps, feeling the exhilaration of leadership; Balor was pensive and moody, his mind’s eye turned back the way they had come, fretting and worrying about what they were doing.

The sun sank lower and lower, briefly setting the clouds on fire before she finally slipped out of sight. With her departure the sky began to darken and cool, and by the time they reached the tree-line dusk was deepening into warm, fragrant night. They stopped next to a dense hedge of chest-high ferns that flourished all along the edge of the wood. Balor flopped down on the grass, his cheeks flushed, the novelty of the adventure wearing off already.