Giving a nod to the woman and her two children sitting there, Hamond left the building.

  There was no chance Hamond wouldn't have agreed to Takhat's request. From what he'd learned about the ashabti, their suffering came from the same source as the spellbound victims of the Spellking's legacy: the dark desire to control other peoples' lives. Having sworn to fight against the latter, Hamond could easily lend his time to fighting the former.

  What he hadn't asked, what Hamond feared to ask, was just how common the practice was in Remuat. Every day that passed, it seemed more and more that going to Remuat was a mistake. Edeline might be safer there, but would either of them be happy, living in a kingdom that inflicted that to its own people? That was why Hamond had fled the Spellking's half of Hyarch to start with.

  He set the harder problem aside to focus on finding Senby, which shouldn't be too difficult. After all, he had briefly seen the young man as he was leaving. Recognizing him would not be a problem. Locating him was the challenge.

  There were only so many places Senby could go within the safety of the barricaded streets. Besides, going by how Nela had described Senby's reaction, Hamond had a fairly good idea as to what the young man was feeling. More importantly, where Senby would look to go right about now: a place to be alone with his thoughts.

  The same place where Hamond would rather be right now.

  The first task this morning would be finding a way up to the rooftops, the most likely spot Senby would retreat to. Even if Senby hadn't, climbing up would give Hamond a good view of where people were and were not. It would be easier to narrow down any remaining possible places Senby might seek.

  Glancing up at the buildings, Hamond paused as he saw the shadowed shape of someone moving along one of the roofs. There was no way he could be that lucky. All the same, that meant there was a way up there, and once he found it, he'd have the view he wanted. Hamond started to trot in that direction, searching carefully.

  It was obvious once he saw it. An old ladder stood in a narrow alley, leaning against one of the stone brick walls. Walking up, Hamond tested it with one foot. The ladder creaked under his weight, but it held. Carefully, one step at a time, he moved up to the roof, pushing himself over the edge with a grunt.

  Rising to his feet, Hamond saw the figure crouched on the north side of the building, staring out across the town. He showed no sign of having heard Hamond, which was noteworthy since Hamond was not trying to be any sort of stealthy. Lost in thought, perhaps.

  Unfortunately, Hamond couldn't let him stay that way. "Greetings."

  The man jumped, spinning around to face Hamond. "What in...who are you?" If this was not Senby, then it was someone close enough to be called his brother. The ragged tunic he wore, however, prevented Hamond from seeing if he had the markings on his back Nela had described.

  "Hamond." No need to be confrontational. "I didn't mean to bother you. I'm just looking for someone."

  "Go look somewhere else," the young man replied, turning away.

  "Then I shall search for Senby elsewhere." The young man jerked as if someone had hit him, which confirmed it was him. Hamond wished he could have this same amount of luck when he played conquest. Games of cards aside, this was turning into as easy a request as Hamond could've imagined.

  Senby, for his part, stood there silently for a long moment, clearly waiting for Hamond to leave. When it was clear Hamond was not, Senby finally turned back around. "Fine. Don't know if anyone's left to pay you for this. Just make it quick."

  "Pay me...for what?" Hamond blinked, feeling quite lost. "No one's paying me anything."

  "Don't play..." Senby trailed off as he stared at Hamond. "By the heavens, you really aren't hunting me down?"

  "Well, in a sense, I was. Captain Takhat sent me to look for you."

  "Of course it was that stupid healer!" Senby clenched one fist. "I knew I shouldn't have said anything."

  Hamond could understand that feeling. He hadn't been the most careful in the past himself. However, it had worked out in the end, and Hamond was certain the same could be achieved in Senby's situation. It was just a matter of making certain Senby and Takhat were working together.

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  "What's done is done," Hamond told Senby, "But the captain is sympathetic and wants to help any ashabti. So am I. We'd like to-"

  "And where were you two all those years?" Senby's voice rose, fury in every word. "The days I was beaten and starved? The days I tried to run, only to be brought back again and again?"

  Hamond winced inwardly, realizing it would not be that simple. "I can't speak for the captain, or apologize. All I can tell you is that if I had been here, I would've offered what help I could."

  "And why didn't you help the ashabti where you lived?" Senby shot back.

  "Because there's none in western Hyarch," Hamond answered calmly, "I wasn't born in Remuat."

  Senby froze, surprise replacing anger on his face. "Oh...I...right. Sorry."

  "You said you tried to escape? That, I can understand. I eventually fled western Hyarch myself, to get away from the Spellking's reign." Hamond intentionally left out the other half of his story, the fact that he had been one of the Spellking's students. "I may have succeeded where you did not, but that doesn't make us all that different."

  "That's the problem," Senby admitted, shifting uneasily on his feet. "I did escape...the night that glowing light covered half the town, and the...monsters appeared."

  Hamond noted the hesitation regarding the last two words, but set that aside for the moment. "What happened?"

  "Made a run for it that evening. They figured it out pretty quickly though, because a couple of guards were right there, chasing me. This old woman showed up and distracted them, though, which was enough for me to get away."

  "So this master of yours has hired guards?" Hamond asked.

  "He'd be more likely to spend the money on another barrel of ale," Senby said bitterly, "No, they were town guards."

  "Town guards?" Hamond repeated, now worried. He didn't think Captain Takhat had been lying to the others, but it was still a possibility. No wonder Senby's first reaction had been rage.

  "Yes, town guards. This is a town and they are the guards." At least Senby was relaxed enough to make jokes. "Do I need to repeat myself a third time?"

  "No," Hamond said, "So if you managed to get away, why did you return?"

  "I should've kept running," Senby said, "But when I saw that light flash over the town, I thought...I could use it to help some other ashabti escape too. My family...but that didn't happen. I didn't make it far before I saw...a horse man. Creature. Whatever he was."

  "I've seen one too," Hamond assured him.

  "But then I realized it. I recognized him. It was a shopkeeper who delivered food and stuff to my master. And he should've recognized me too, since I was often told to help move the crates he had brought. But he didn't. He just screamed and charged at me. So I just ran. Hurt my foot, but was able to find a place to hide."

  That settled it, without any room for doubt. Whatever the true source of the spell was, it had changed the people caught in it, twisting their bodies and ruining their minds. This was an abominable act, one that rivaled the terrible deeds of the Spellking and those who followed him. Whoever was responsible, Hamond vowed to himself, would face their judgment.

  But that was a problem for later. "And so you ended up here," Hamond concluded.

  "Doesn't change that much," Senby said, "There's nothing left for me in Lasfont. My family's gone, and so is my master. I'm leaving this town the day it's safe to. Until then...nothing for me to do."

  That matched what Hamond had seen the past two days. A lot of the people here had no work to do, forced to wait around accomplishing little. As well organized as Captain Takhat was, it did appear she had no real plans to return to normal order, content to wait for outside assistance.

  If Edeline or Myronel realized this, they'd immediately want to volunteer their full abilities to clearing the town. While Hamond was reluctant, it was possible this might be the only way they could resume their search for the Sluice. No, Hamond couldn't think of a good reason to disagree.

  "So you're not from here. Why come to Lasfont?" Senby asked.

  "To meet someone." Hamond figured he could reveal this much. "Me and my companions had made an agreement earlier, and we traveled here to fulfill our side of it. Now, though...it may not happen."

  "I guess meetings like that happen all the time here. Or they used to," Senby said, "I know the old bulgegut had people visiting just about every hexday. From the north, from the south...even some of those weird Sekhmati showed up a few times."

  So Ugotlas hadn't been misleading them in that regard. Although it raised the question again if they could be trusted, if they were willing to deal with people like Senby's former master. It just made all the more important to locate Ugotlas.

  Again, a problem for later. "Our own business aside...will you meet with the captain?"

  Senby stopped for a second, thinking it through. "Fine," he finally said, "But you better be there to make sure the captain or any guard don't try something."

  "I will." If they did...in truth, this wasn't how Hamond planned to reveal his thaumaturgy, but if that was needed to keep Senby safe, he would. This, of course, went against his earlier desire to not reveal such. Maybe they were just fated to be bad at keeping their spellcraft secret.

  "I'll hold you to it." Senby started towards the ladder, then stopped. "Shit, no....you're joking. What do we do now?"

  Hamond looked over to see the ladder was no longer there. While they were talking, someone had come along and taken it, leaving them with no easy way off the building's roof. So much for his good luck, Hamond mused, as he started searching for the best spot to climb down. At least if one of them fell, they both knew a good healer to turn to.

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