Beneath them, within the domed temple, twenty men wearing red robes with hoods stood looking up towards the balcony expectantly. At the staged end of the temple the drapes had been pulled back to reveal a finely detailed statue of a man who resembled, for Marcellus, more than anyone, the blind seer he had encountered in the temple of Khamen in Horta. Directly below them, in the centre of the room, stood Vitellius, a scarlet and gold cloak about his shoulders, his hands clasped behind his back, an expression of total satisfaction on his face. Abruptly, he clapped his hands. Marcellus, Kotsoteka and Miki, now chained to the balcony railing, could see each of the nine doorways around the perimeter of the balcony from where they stood. At last a figure emerged from the farthest door on the left, and immediately a second appeared from the door on the opposite side. One by one they came out of their chambers and descended to the stage, where they took up their positions, nine on the left of the statue, nine on the right.

'As a ceremony, it leaves me cold,' Kotsoteka remarked, 'it leaves me cold.'

'What did you expect?'

'More in the way of dancing and shouting. It is the only way to communicate.'

'Communicate?'

'With the Gods.'

'I think they are ugly,' Miki said.

'Ugly?'

'I think they are ugly too,' Kotsoteka said. 'None of them compares with you, Miki.'

She flushed prettily, and lowered her eyes, embarrassed.

'What do you think, Angry Wolf? Do you think they are ugly?' Kotsoteka asked.

Marcellus smiled.

'I have formed no opinion.'

'What do you think will happen to us?' Miki asked.

'I suspect that Vitellius intends for us to be killed,' Marcellus said. He saw no point in trying to shield the young maiden from the uncertain future that faced the three of them.

'He is afraid of you,' Kotsoteka murmured.

'I see no reason why he should be,' Marcellus said.

'He fears you, because he has tried to kill you so many times before, and always he has failed. You have always managed to escape, somehow.'

'I thought that I had killed him, in Pekeesh, in the sacred grove. I was wrong.'

'He deceived you into thinking you had killed him.'

'No, I believe he substituted somebody who resembled him closely.'

'What are they waiting for?' Miki asked, frowning.

'I regret I do not know. I have not witnessed this ceremony,' Marcellus replied. The girls standing either side of the statue had still not moved. Neither had Vitellius.

'Is it possible that the man down there is not Vitellius?' Kotsoteka asked.

'I have no way of knowing any more,' Marcellus said. 'He looks like Vitellius, but then so did the man I killed in the sacred grove. Whoever he is, it makes little difference. Our fates are sealed.'

'We cannot simply allow ourselves to be killed!' Miki cried.

'I wish there was something we could do,' admitted Marcellus, 'but I am bereft of ideas. Our lives have to end some time.'

'Not here, I do not believe they were meant to end here, in this horrible place!'

At last Vitellius moved, and began to speak.

'Handmaidens to Khamen, there stand before you three who have transgressed the faith of your God. One in particular deserves his wrath. He seeks to destroy your faith and put an end to all of you, destroying your temples and banning your rituals and rites. He preaches against me, the proven son of your God, and seeks my death. Your God speaks through you today. Is it his wish that the intruders be put to death?'

In one voice, the eighteen maidens answered 'yes' most solemnly.

Vitellius nodded.

'And what is to be the way of their deaths?' he asked.

The girl standing nearest to him answered on behalf of them all.

'They are to be taken to the rocks and cast down upon them,' she said. Again Vitellius nodded.      

'Take them away,' he ordered.

'Afraid to do your own executions still, Vitellius?' Marcellus called.

'I do not fear you!' Vitellius answered.

'Then throw me a sword and let the two of us do battle.'

'No!' the girl cried. 'It is sacrilege. No blood must be spilt in the temple of Khamen!'

'Outside, then!' Marcellus called.

'Take them to the rocks!' Vitellius shouted angrily, and strode from the room as willing, strong hands seized the three prisoners and dragged them down the steps and out of the temple.

'Where are they taking us?' Miki cried.

'I do not know this place particularly well,' Marcellus said. 'The last time I was here, I was in and out of the city within a few minutes.'

They were taken out into the strong sunlight and through the streets of the strange city until they came to a low gateway, through which they passed out into the open country. Beyond them, perhaps a quarter of a mile away, was the sea, the ocean Marcellus had traversed in his first attack on Prakussara. Down a well-worn track to the cliffs they were led, pushed and pulled by the angry crowd who had surged forward on their emergence from the temple to assist the guards with the task of escorting them to their place of execution. Amongst them was a white-haired old man who repeatedly ran through the people to launch himself at Marcellus, several times landing blows on his head and shoulders until he was bruised and bleeding. No one made any attempt to stop the old man.

At last they arrived at the clifftop. A long line of stone grey granite cliffs, viciously spiked, cascaded down into the ocean where hundreds more jagged spikes breached the surface of the dark blue waters. The unskra surrounding Marcellus and his companions brought them to a halt on the very edge of the clifftop. Vitellius pushed his way through the crowd. He was head and shoulders taller than anyone else there, apart from the prisoners.

'There is one here who would dearly love to see you suffer badly, Marcellus of Barbessel,' he said, quietly, and summoned the old man to the front of the crowd. 'This is Genneis, the father of two of the Prakussaran virgins you abducted from the holy city.'

Marcellus looked into the eyes of the old man and saw there only hatred.

'If it meant anything, I would offer my apology,' he said. 'I acted under orders. I am a warrior. I must obey.'

Genneis stared stone-faced at Marcellus.

'Do they still live?' he muttered coarsely.

Marcellus lowered his head.

'One lives, I believe,' he said. Genneis shook his head savagely and jerked his thumb at the ground.

'I sent someone after you, to kill you,' he said. 'Now it seems I did not need to.'

'Genneis,' Vitellius said, 'you shall be the one to push the outlaw into the abyss.'

Genneis nodded. Marcellus glanced behind him and smiled briefly. There were jagged spikes all the way down the cliff, and if he survived those, there were spikes piercing the surface of the choppy waters hundreds of feet below. It seemed certain to him that his time had come at last, and that this time there could be no possible escape.

'The beauty of it is,' Vitellius continued, 'that you will die without knowing what is going to happen to your companions, and I believe that is the cruellest way to deal with you. Take him to the edge.'

Marcellus, his hands and ankles tied securely, touched Miki's and Kotsoteka's hands briefly, and his eyes spoke a silent apology to the two of them for having failed to save them, then two unskra and Genneis led him to the very edge of the precipice. For a brief moment he closed his eyes and composed himself. He had always believed that he would die in battle, not by execution, and in that respect he was disappointed. He noticed at that moment that the rope which secured his hands was held on either side by the unskra.

'It is the duty of the people of Prakussara to exact their vengeance on the outlaw who took so many of their women. Marcellus of Barbessel,' Vitellius intoned, 'you are sentenced to death. Were you by some miracle of fate to survive the spikes of the rocks as you fall into the pool, rest assured that within the waters of the abyss lurk the most fearsome monsters on this continent, or anywhere on Heraklion. If you look closely, you will see their shapes rippling beneath the waters, and you need have no doubt that your death will be long, and lingering, and painful, as befits an enemy of the holy city.'

'One day your time will come, Vitellius,' Marcellus said. 'The people of Heraklion will see you for what you are, and you will be defeated. You may have fooled these holy men and women, but you will not always be so fortunate.' 

'Look closely, Marcellus,' Vitellius hissed. 'The abyss is completely enclosed. There is no escape from the pool of death. If the spikes do not kill you, piercing your heart, your brains, your liver and your lungs, then the sea-silthen will slaughter you, and you will down in your own bile. Many enemies of the holy city have met their end here. None has survived!'

'There is always a first time,' Marcellus said, grinning, knowing that his carefree attitude towards his own death would provoke the madman even more. But Vitellius, the knuckles of his fists clenched white with anger, began to relax.

'It is time,' he said. 'Look for the last time upon Heraklion, and your puny friends. Their turn comes next. Genneis, do it.'

Genneis stepped forward and Marcellus was turned to face the pool, hundreds of feet below, surrounded by a ridge of jagged spikes, with no way out to the ocean beyond. Marcellus tensed himself, and gave himself the satisfaction of knowing that Kotsoteka and Miki were not openly displaying any emotions at his execution, although had he been able to see them he would have noticed that there were tears in both his and her eyes.

'Marcellus!' Miki cried, straining to be free of the unskra who restrained her, and as she uttered his name, a shaft pierced the eye of one of the crowd standing at the back, away from the cliffs. Immediately there was total confusion as the people of Prakussara scrambled for cover. Vitellius barked an order for the unskra to remain where they were.

'It is a sniper,' he said. 'We will continue with the execution of our foremost enemy. Genneis, do it.'

Genneis stepped forward, and as he did so, a second arrow felled an unskra standing beside Vitellius. Livid with rage, he rushed at the small group of men standing at the cliff edge and shoved them, down, over the brink, and Miki and Kotsoteka could only watch with horror as their dearest friend, his two unskra guards and the old man plunged to their certain death. Then Vitellius gave the order for them to take cover as a third arrow pierced the leg of another of the unskra. They dived behind the rocks and watched with increasing uncertainty as more arrows flew at them, some striking the rocks as others found their targets. There were a few brief seconds whilst the archers re-loaded, and then a further hail of shafts pierced the morning air. Vitellius' eyes narrowed in suspicion as he came to the conclusion that there was just one man, though how he had managed to loose so many arrows concurrently was beyond him for the time being. He waited until a fourth volley of arrows had landed around them, two finding their mark with seemingly random accuracy, then leapt from his cover and shouted to the unskra to follow him, bringing their charges with them. But Kotsoteka, who had also realised that there was probably only one archer, and that the attack was almost certainly directed against the unskra and Vitellius, seized the opportunity and lashed out with his foot, bringing two of the unskra crashing down against the rocks. Miki stumbled to her feet and managed to get a knife from one of the unskra's belt. As Vitellius and most of the surviving unskra and people scurried back within the safety of the city walls, Kotsoteka and Miki freed themselves and made their way to the cover of the rocks at the cliff edge, where they found the lone archer.

'Radulf!' Miki cried, seeing the young Hortaian. He, covered in confusion, was about to release another hail of arrows, but they persuaded him that the people had gone back into the city.

'You know him?' Kotsoteka asked.

'He is a friend of Angry Wolf. This is Kotsoteka, son of my father's brother.'

Radulf warily extended his palm. Kotsoteka, acknowledging without hesitation that the young stranger had undoubtedly saved their lives, accepted the gesture.

'I was too late to save him,' Radulf said, and the three of them crawled to the very edge of the precipice and stared gloomily down, expecting to see the smashed and bleeding bodies of Marcellus and the unskra he had pulled down with him. But there was no sign of any human remains, only bleached bones in a hollow formed by some of the rocks, bones that had been there for many years.

'We cannot stay here,' Kotsoteka said. 'Angry Wolf could not have survived the fall. Even if he managed to dodge the rocks, he would be dead. There can be no escape from the pool of death. You heard what Vitellius said.'

'He has been wrong before!' Miki said. 'He has sent Angry Wolf to his death on more than one occasion, and always he has survived!'

'Not this time! There are sea-silthen down there. See the ripples in the water!' Kotsoteka said. 'Come, it is not safe for us to linger here. Pretty soon Vitellius will bring a war band from the city to hunt us down. We must get as far away from here as possible!'

'Radulf?' Miki asked, tugging at his arm, hoping for his support. He, too, shook his head.

'He could not have survived, Miki,' he said.

'He might have!' she insisted.

'Your companion is right. We cannot remain here, there is danger for us, and if we do not take the message back to Barbessel Vitellius will bring his war band and there will be mighty war in our lands.'

'You are saying that we should go back to Pekeesh, and you should return to Horta?' Miki said, angrily.

Radulf nodded sadly.

'There is nothing more we can do here.'

'I agree. Our peoples must be warned of what Vitellius plans to do next,' Kotsoteka said.

'I am going to search for Angry Wolf,' Miki said.

'You cannot do that,' Kotsoteka said, putting his hand on her arm and pulling her away from the edge.

'No, you cannot,' Radulf said.

'Take your hand off me!' she said, here eyes flashing. Kotsoteka did not take his hand off her. Instead he increased his grip on her arm, pulling her firmly but gently away.

'You cannot go down there, Miki,' he said quietly.

'You cannot stop me! I am daughter of the chief!'

'He would not want you to do this.'

'He would not abandon his ally.'

'Miki, listen to me. If Angry Wolf had survived the fall, his body would be visible, somewhere, down there. If he managed to get into the water, there would be some sign of him. He is dead, Miki.'

'No!'

'I am afraid your companion is right,' Radulf said. 'The best thing we can do is go up into the hills to the north and lie low until tomorrow, then return to our homelands and warn them of the impending invasion by Vitellius.'

'I want to see for myself that he is dead,' Miki said through clenched teeth. 'If either of you tries to stop me.....'

'It is our duty to stop you, you stupid girl!' Kotsoteka said. Instantly her hand slapped hard against his face but he stood his ground, did not flinch, and did not relinquish his hold of her.

'You are not going down there, and that is an end to the matter,' he said.

'I have to agree, Miki. I am sorry, there is nothing you can do, and I will do everything I can to prevent you from going to your death,' Radulf said.

'You are both spineless cowards!' she hissed. Without answering her, each took a wrist and pulled her away from the edge and onto the path that led away from the cliff face and to the hills to the north of the city. For a while she struggled, but she had the good sense not to bring her companions into further danger and kept her head down as they moved along the path almost on all fours, she trapped between the two of them. At last they were under cover of the shrubs, and were able to release her.

'Do you have any food?' Kotsoteka asked.

'I will get some,' Radulf said, and disappeared into the undergrowth for a few minutes, returning with armfuls of fruit and nuts, and gourds full of cool, refreshing water.

'I have been camping out here for a few days now. I watched them capture you. I should have been ready to assist you then, but I was too far away. I did not expect you to attack the city,' he said.

'Was it you who shot at the spearmen?' Miki asked.

'In the mountains? Yes. Again I was too far away to be of any further help to you, but I tracked you to the city.'

'How did you fire so many arrows all at once?' Kotsoteka demanded.

Radulf shrugged.

'It was not difficult. Instead of a long bow I constructed a short bow with a much longer pull, and where there would normally be one nock for one arrow, I made six nocks for six arrows. The bowstring was made from the gut of some animal or other which I killed on the first day I was here. It is held very taut and released by a simple mechanism. It is simple.'

'It saved our lives,' Kotsoteka said.

'Not Angry Wolf's,' Miki said, glaring at them. She had eaten sparingly, but now she reached inside her pouch for the dried biscuits she had been carrying with her since leaving Warikeewa camp, and which had not been taken away from her in Prakussara. In silence she handed each of them a biscuit.

'I am sorry I was too late to save Marcellus,' Radulf said. 'I started shooting at the most propitious moment.....'

'A minute earlier and he may very well be sitting here with us,' she said, and turned her back on them.

'I have explored this part of the countryside during the time I have been here,' Radulf said, addressing Kotsoteka. 'For the most part the people are fanatics, worshipping this ridiculous God. It is these people Vitellius has whipped up into a frenzy and who he will lead against Pekeesh and Barbessel. Already he has an army massing of several thousand men. The women also are unlike women anywhere else on Heraklion, and I believe they are prepared to fight also. But beyond these hills the land runs down to the ocean. There are one or two villages down on the sand. I have made the acquaintance of some of the inhabitants, and they do not seem to favour the holy city or its occupants over much. I believe we should make for the coast and take the northern route back to Pekeesh.'

'I agree,' Kotsoteka said. 'In the meantime, we will build a shelter and light a fire. It is cold in these northern latitudes, and I believe it may rain soon.'

He pointed to a glowering black sky laden with rain clouds, and sure enough, as he stood up, the rain came. They ran for the cover of an overhanging rock which extended to a small cave, and Kotsoteka set about gathering wood for a fire, while Radulf pulled the shrubs and brushwood across the entrance of their makeshift dwelling so that they would not be seen from the city. The storm raged as they ate their fruit and nuts, and the sky became blacker and blacker. Soon the rain was so heavy that they could not see through it, and there was little they could do except sit and wait.