1
I believed it had been long enough that Kresimir would never return. I believed it was time for change. I thought all of Rozalia’s concerns were foolish, and that Julene was living in the past. I believed we were alone.”“ My people have never been alone, ” Mihali said. “The others may have left. I did not.Brian McClellan
2
The people are hungry, ” Mihali said. He lifted his hands, spreading them to encompass the city. “The people need to be fed. They need bread and wine and soup and meat. But not just that. They need friendship.” He pointed to a minor noble, some viscount decked out in his finest foppish frills, who poured a bottle of St. Adom’s Festival wine into the cups of a half-dozen street urchins.“ They need companionship, ” Mihali said. “They need love and brotherhood.” He turned to Tamas. He reached out with one hand, putting a palm to Tamas’s cheek. Instinct told Tamas to step back. He found that he couldn’t.“ You gorged them on the blood of the nobility, ” Mihali said gently. “They drank, but were not filled. They ate of hatred and grew hungrier.” He took a deep breath. “Your intentions were… well, not pure, but just. Justice is never enough.” He let go of Tamas and turned to the square. “I will put things right, ” he said. He puffed out his chest and spread his arms. “I will feed all of Adro. It is what they need. .Brian McClellan
3
You’ve one mark on your record, ” Tamas said. “You once punched a na-baron in the face. Broke his jaw. Tell me about that.” Olem grimaced. “Officially, sir, I was pushing him out of the way of a runaway carriage. Saved his life. Half my company saw it.”“ With your fist?”“ Aye.”“ And unofficially?”“ The man was a git. He shot my dog because it startled his horse.”“ And if I ever have cause to shoot your dog?”“ I’ll punch you in the face.”“ Fair enough. You have the job.Brian McClellan
4
You know, ” Taniel said, “we could have kept firing after they sounded the retreat. Would have wiped out thousands on the mountainside. The Kez did that to us in Fatrasta a few times.” Gavril snorted angrily. “War has to have some decorum. Otherwise it’s back to the Bleakening for all of us, and Kresimir be damned.Brian McClellan