The Ruby Prince: Book Two of Imirillia (The Books of Imirillia 2) Read Free Page A

towards the door of the pavilion. “Remember,” he added, “soldiers surround the tent, Eleanor.”
    Then he left Eleanor to herself.
    ***
    “Prince.” Annan was waiting anxiously.
    “Annan,” Basaal said, nodding to his friend. “Order our men to keep watch on the pavilion: no one goes in. Then come, walk with me through the camp.”
    Annan called quick commands to the standing guard and then fell into step with Basaal.
    “Have you already sent a scout to check the pass?” Basaal asked quietly, aware that several of Drakta’s men stood nearby.
    “Ashan was sent out first thing this morning,” Annan said. “The cliffsides through the narrowest neck of the pass have completely crumbled into themselves. The pass will be impossible to breach, until we have put months into clearing a sufficient passage for our army to move through in force.”
    Basaal considered what his friend told him as he breathed in the still air of morning. The soldiers brought themselves to attention as Basaal passed, watching him with unspoken interest. The prince was a favorite national figure. And, as Basaal noted their faces watching him in wonder and fear, his initial reaction was pleasure. But after that emotion had passed, the image of how people had greeted Eleanor scratched itself across his mind, and Basaal felt agitated in his own skin. He turned back to what Annan was saying.
    “What was that, Annan?” Basaal asked.
    “Which part?” Annan replied. “You haven’t been listening at all, have you?”
    “You were mentioning something about clearing the rubble in the pass,” Basaal hedged.
    Annan started over. “Clearing the pass would be monumental work, we will need supplies, animals, rations. And, the local Marions have been saying that winter will come early this year. They say the Aemogen pass is stopped up every winter from snow as it is, let alone the jumble of impassable stone there now.”
    “We will winter the army in Marion,” Basaal stated. “There is no sense in sending them on a three-month journey home, only to have them turn around and come straight back come spring, to start clearing the pass. Have the locals said how long the snow lasts?”
    Annan put his hands behind his back as they walked. “They say it can be up to six months’ time,” he answered. “Basaal, I do not see how we can winter your entire army here for over half a year.” Annan shrugged. “At the same time, bringing the men home would mean endless travel, which is expensive, in itself.”
    “Keeping the army in Marion would not be a great difficulty,” Basaal countered. “You and I would, of course, return to Zarbadast for the winter, with a small company that travels light and fast. We could be there before the day of purification if we pushed ahead.” Basaal’s heart beat at the prospect of returning home.
    “And you believe that King Staven will welcome a foreign army eating out of his own storehouses?”
    “If we have the gold for it, he’ll have the stomach,” Basaal answered shrewdly. “And, I’ve gold enough to support my own army. We will pass through dear Marion City, on our way to Zarbadast, and pay the king a visit.”
    His friend had an odd expression on his face, as if he did not trust Basaal’s plan.
    “Why are you looking at me like that, Annan?” Basaal asked.
    “I am wondering what your motives are, My Prince,” Annan responded, his words careful.
    They had walked the length of the camp, so Basaal turned to face his friend, stopping at the edge of a large field, where hundreds of horses had been staked. “Why do you say that?” Basaal asked under his breath. “What causes you of all people to question my motives?”
    “There are rumors among the men in camp,” Annan said. “They say that you have aligned yourself with Aemogen and that bringing down the mountain was your doing. They also say you have let the Aemogen queen turn your head.”
    “Ridiculous. You of all people know my personal