Shadow Games: The Fourth Chronicles of the Black Company: First Book of the South Read Free Page A

see that end of the room. Sure enough, Blade had come
     home. Tall, lean, ebony, head shaved to a polish, muscles rippling with the
     slightest movement, he looked like some kind of gleaming statue. He looked
     around without approval. Then he strode to Willow’s table, took a seat. The
     girls gave him the eye. He was as exotic as Willow Swan.
    “Come to collect your share and tell us how lousy we are, corrupting these
     children?” Willow asked.
    Blade shook his head. “That old spook Smoke’s having dreams again. The Woman
     wants you.”
    “Shit.” Swan dropped his feet to the floor. Here was the fly in the ointment.
    The Woman wouldn’t leave them alone. “What is it this time? What’s he doing?
    Hemp?”
    “He’s a wizard. He don’t need to do nothing to get obnoxious.”
    “Shit,” Swan said again. “What do you think, we just do a fade-out here? Sell
     the rest of Cordy’s rat piss and head back up the river?”
    A big, slow grin spread across Blade’s face. “Too late, boy. You been chosen.
    You can’t run fast enough. That Smoke, he might be a joke if he was to open shop
     up where you came from, but around here he’s the bad boss spook pusher. You try
     to head out, you’re going to find your toes tied in knots.”
    “That the official word?”
    “They didn’t say it that way. That’s what they meant.”
    “So what did he dream this time? Why drag us in?”
    “Shadowmasters. More Shadowmasters. Been a big meet at Shadowcatch, he says.
    They’re going to stop talking and start doing. He says Moonshadow got the call.
    Says we’ll be seeing them in Taglian territory real soon now.”
    “Big deal. Been trying to sell us that since the day we got here, practically.”
    Blade’s face lost all its humor. “It was different this time, man. There’s
     scared and scared, you know what I mean? And Smoke and the Woman was the second
     kind this time. And it ain’t just Shadowmasters they got on the brain now. Said
     to tell you the Black Company is coming. Said you’d know what that means.”
    Swan grunted as if hit in the stomach. He stood, drained the beer Cordy had
     brought, looked around as if unable to believe what he saw. “Damned-foolest
     thing I ever heard, Blade. The Black Company? Coming here?”
    “Said that’s what’s got the Shadowmasters riled, Willow. Said they’re rattled
     good. This’s the last free country north of them, under the river. And you know
     what’s on the other side of Shadowcatch.”
    “I don’t believe it. You know how far they’d have to come?”
    “About as far as you and Cordy.” Blade had joined Willow and Cordwood Mather two
     thousand miles into their journey south.
    “Yeah. You tell me, Blade. Who in the hell besides you and me and Cordy would be
     crazy enough to travel that far without any reason?”
    “They got a reason. According to Smoke.”
    “Like what?”
    “I don’t know. You go up there like the Woman says. Maybe she’ll tell you.”
    “I’ll go. We’ll all go. Just to stall. And first chance we get we’re going to
     get the hell out of Taglios. If they got the Shadowmasters stirred up down
     there, and the Black Company coming in, I don’t want to be anywhere around.”
    Blade leaned back so one of the girls could wiggle in closer. His expression was
     questioning.
    Swan said, “I seen what those bastards could do back home. I saw Roses caught
     between them and . . . Hell. Just take my word for it, Blade. Big mojo, and all
     bad. If they’re coming for real, and we’re still around when they show, you
     might end up wishing we’d let those crocs go ahead and snack on you.”
    Blade never had been too clear on why he had been thrown to the crocodiles. And
     Willow was none too clear on why he had talked Cordy into dragging him out and
     taking him along. Though Blade had been a right enough guy since. He’d paid back
     the debt.
    “I think you ought to help them, Swan,” Blade said. “I like this town. I