"Are they still following us?" Kaleesh turned his head to glance at the trees that lined the road behind them. Though no people could be seen, his eyes held a hint of wariness.
"They're still there," Arran confirmed. "But I don't expect them to do anything. They're just Rangers, after all."
Several days had passed since they left the city, with the road to the Wolfsblood Army's leading them through seemingly endless farmlands that held more sheep than people.
But sparsely populated though the area was, Arran and Kaleesh had not gone unnoticed. Barely an hour after they left the city's outskirts behind, Arran had Sensed a pair of Rangers following some distance behind, furtively moving through the trees like wolves stalking prey.
Of course, that comparison only held true on the surface. In reality, the Rangers were more like sheep stalking wolves, with only the laws of Sacrifice protecting them from their quarry.
That flimsy protection was all the Rangers needed, however. Easy as it would be for Arran to defeat them, he would not risk attacking the Rangers without cause — not where others might learn of the attack, at least.
"I suppose they're harmless," Kaleesh said, though there was a trace of displeasure in his voice. "Still, I'd like to know who sent them."
"I could capture them," Arran said. "Even if we can't kill them, perhaps they can be persuaded to talk."
Kaleesh briefly hesitated before shaking his head. "Even if you get them to talk, there's no way to know if they're telling the truth. Besides, the camp should be less than an hour away. If they continue to spy on us there, we'll have cause to act."
Arran gave a short nod. "We'll see what they do." While he was hardly an expert on the laws of Sacrifice, he understood that spying on any of the armies' camps was considered an act of aggression. If the Rangers crossed that line, the situation would naturally change.
A half-hour passed quietly, and it wasn't long before Arran saw buildings appear in the distance — enough to pass for a small town, rather than the camp he had expected to see.
Yet he remembered almost immediately that the camp Kaleesh had chosen lay just a few miles from the nearest town. This should be the town, then, which meant the camp would be nearby.
"Let's take a look," Kaleesh said. "It can't hurt to know who our neighbors are."
Arran naturally had no objections to this, and as they neared the small town, he looked around with some interest.
It was immediately obvious that this was no common town. While there were many common shops and houses among the buildings, he spotted over a dozen inns and taverns in just a few short minutes — enough to accommodate hundreds of travelers.
Yet plentiful as the inns and taverns were, they currently stood mostly empty, with only a handful of locals drinking at one of them.
"It seems Sassun is a stricter commander than I am," Kaleesh mused. "I'd have expected to find at least some of the troops here."
"It might not be strictness on his part." Arran rubbed his chin, a thoughtful look in his eyes. "We're in Sacrifice, after all, and I can't imagine the prices here being lower than elsewhere."
As realization set in, Kaleesh muttered a curse. "The damn church is too greedy. I handed Sassun enough coin to last several months."
Arran gave the captain a wry smile. "Barely enough for a week or two, in other words."
Though Kaleesh's expression turned ugly at Arran's words, he did not argue the point. Instead, he remained silent for several seconds before finally shaking his head in disgust. "I've seen enough. Let's go."
Arran did not argue, though he did not share Kaleesh's annoyance, either. While the prices in Sacrifice were undeniably extortionate, his void ring held enough pure shadowmetal coins to supply the army for years if not decades.
More importantly, he had other matters to worry about.
Although he had some idea of how he could strengthen his new bloodlines, he had yet to put his theory to the test. And although he had some confidence that his instincts were correct, a shred of doubt still remained in his mind.
Yet just as they moved to leave, Arran's thoughts were interrupted by an anxious voice.
"Master Kaleesh!"
As Arran turned to look, he saw that the voice belonged to an elderly man who was hurrying over at a pace that seemed to be well beyond what his frail body could handle. White-haired and dressed in a set of ill-fitting clothes that might once have been called fine, he had the look of a nobleman who'd lost his fortune long ago.
"Master Kaleesh!" the man called out again, his face red from the exertion as he came to a halt. He faced the two with some doubt in his eyes, apparently uncertain which of them he'd called out to.
Kaleesh remained silent for a moment, giving the man an examining look. Finally, he said, "Yes?"
At once, the old man's lips curled up in an ingratiating smile as he faced Kaleesh. "I apologize for disturbing you," he said, his breath still heavy from the short run, "but Master Sassun told me you would arrive soon, and I have an urgent matter to discuss with you."
"Sassun told you about me?" Kaleesh frowned. "What sort of matter is it you wish to discuss?"
Having won Kaleesh's attention, the old man took a moment to catch his breath. Then, in a calmer voice, he said, "I understand that you and your men intend to travel into the Desolation soon. It is my hope that I can help in providing you with supplies."
"You're a merchant?" Kaleesh asked, his voice flat as he looked at the man with barely veiled skepticism.
"Not exactly," the old man replied, slightly shaking his head. "Ultimately, everything sold in Sacrifice is controlled by the church. But I am well-connected, and I can help you acquire supplies at a price well below what you would otherwise pay."
"What's in it for you?" The captain made no effort whatsoever to hide the suspicion in his tone.
"A small fee," the man replied, not the least bit deterred by Kaleesh's curt manner. "All I require is a small bit of gold. In return, I will save you a great deal of shadowmetal. Naturally, I can also help with other matters. Should you need information, I can provide that as well. Whether it's maps or details about the other armies, I can find what you need."
Kaleesh narrowed his eyes as he studied the man. Then, somewhat to Arran's surprise, he gave a nod. "I'll give you a chance," he said. "Two Rangers have followed us since we left the city. If you can find out who sent them, I may decide to make use of your other services."
At once, a broad smile appeared on the man's wrinkled face. "Certainly!" he said in an excited tone. "I will get to work at once. My name is Baqi. Once I have the information you need, I will find you at once. Now, I need to…"
Arran and Kaleesh did not learn what it was the man needed, as he instantly turned around and walked away, mumbling to himself as he headed for one of the taverns.
"He seems an unreliable sort." Arran gave Kaleesh a questioning look. "Why did you ask for his help?"
"He might be a madman," Kaleesh said with a shrug, "or perhaps a particularly inept crook. But whatever he is, the Imperium's lordlings would not send someone like that. It can't hurt to see if he's of use to us."
"If you say so." Though Arran had little hope that the old man would prove useful, there was no harm in giving him a chance. At worst — and most likely — he would fail to find any useful information.
"I do," Kaleesh replied. "But we should head off. I'm curious to see how the army has fared in our absence."
There was a trace of anxiousness in the captain's voice as he spoke, and Arran understood his friend��s worries all too well.
While Sassun was a capable enough commander, he had neither Kaleesh's authority nor Arran's strength. If any of the Rangers in the army had made trouble, Sassun would have had to rely on others to put an end to it.
Still, there was no point in adding fuel to the captain's worries. And so, instead of voicing his own concerns, Arran merely nodded and said, "I'm sure Sassun has kept them in check. Especially with Arjun helping him."
As the Wolfsblood Army's camp lay only a few miles from the small town, it wasn't long before they saw the camp's gate appear in the distance.
At once, Arran breathed a sigh of relief. Although the camp's walls were shabbier than he'd expected and the gate looked like it would struggle to stop a wild boar, he instantly recognized Arjun leading the small group of soldiers who guarded the gate.
If nothing else, at the very least that meant the army had not disbanded.
Arjun gave them an excited wave as they approached. "You've returned!" he called out, a wide smile on his face. "We were beginning to worry you'd abandoned us."
Though his face held a grin, the relieved look in his eyes suggested that he spoke only partly in jest. They had been gone far longer than expected, after all.
"Good to see you," Kaleesh said as he approached the Ranger. "Any trouble while I was gone?"
"Nothing too serious," Arjun replied. "There was a bit of a scuffle, but Barric took care of it. Come, let me show you around."
As he guided them through the gate, Kaleesh shot him a questioning look. "A scuffle? Who were involved?"
"Domar and Ifras," Arjun said, "though neither was willing to speak much about it."
At the mention of Domar's name, Kaleesh's expression darkened. "Domar was making trouble?"
Although Domar was young, he was perhaps the most talented among the Wolfsblood Army's Rangers. But for all his talent, he was also a constant source of disagreement and complaints.
If the young Ranger had started trouble once more, Arran suspected Kaleesh would kick him out of the army, talented or not.
Yet to his surprise, Arjun shook his head. "This time, it was Ifras who began it. Though I can't say what they were bickering about, this time it wasn't Domar's fault." He shrugged, then added, "Either way, the beating Barric gave them seems to have done them some good. I haven't heard a complaint from either in days."
Though it looked as if Kaleesh was about to ask another question, the captain fell silent when he laid eyes on the camp. He did not speak for several moments, until finally, he said in a soft voice, "I paid ten pure shadowmetal coins for this?"
His expression held outrage and shock in equal measure, and as Arran looked at the camp, he knew exactly what Kaleesh was thinking.
The most charitable thing that could be said about the camp was that it was, in fact, a camp. There were several spacious training fields, a number of large barracks, a dozen small cottages to house the commanders, and a number of other buildings.
Yet a single glance was enough to see that all of it was in a state of utter disrepair. One of the barracks was missing a roof and several of the others looked like they might collapse from sheer misery at any moment. And while the cottages looked to be in slightly better shape, they still more resembled beggars' sheds than they did commanders' houses.
As for the training fields… Arran shook his head in disgust the moment he laid eyes on them. Though they were not lacking in space, most looked like freshly plowed farmlands that had just weathered a terrible storm, with at least a foot of mud covering the ground wherever he looked.
Seeing their dumbfounded expressions, Arjun gave a wry smile. "Sassun managed to find several new cooks," he said. "So at least the food is good."
"This is…" Kaleesh began, but a moment later, he shook his head and sighed in resignation. "I suppose it can't be helped. We'll only be here for a few weeks. If nothing else, we'll be well-prepared for the hardsh.i.p.s of the Desolation."
"It could be worse," Arjun said. "The first time I stayed in Sacrifice, we had to stay in tents."
Arran refrained from pointing out that even tents might be a step up from the dilapidated buildings he saw before him, as tents would at least not collapse on top of their inhabitants.
"Come," Arjun continued, "I'll show you to the others. They'll be glad to see that you've both returned." At those last words, he cast a short glance at Arran, as if he'd been worried that Arran in particular might have joined another group.
They spent the next hour greeting the Wolfsblood Army's soldiers and Rangers, sharing drinks with the troops while they loudly joked about the dismal state of the camp.
Arran quickly discovered that Barric had not held back in dealing with Domar and Ifras, as both Rangers still sported heavily bruised faces. Ifras in particular looked miserable, with a broken nose and two black eyes, but Domar wasn't in a much better state.
When Arran asked Barric about this, the giant Ranger gave a booming laugh. "They forgot that talent isn't strength," he said. "I merely offered a reminder. Of course, should they forget again, I would be happy to help them remember."
Arran could only smile wryly. From the fearful looks the two young Rangers gave Barric, he did not think they would forget the lesson any time soon.
Sassun, meanwhile, was in a rare good mood. Although he'd handled his task without issue, only a blind man would fail to see how glad he was to be rid of it.
Finally, as the troops returned to their training, Sassun took Arran and Kaleesh aside. "I'll show you to your quarters," he said. "We've saved the best two cottages for you, but…" He shrugged helplessly, the gesture making it clear that they shouldn't expect much.
Kaleesh laughed. "It's only right that we should suffer with the rest of you. But tell me, we met an old man in the nearby town…"
At once, Sassun sighed. "You've met Old Baqi, then. He's been pestering us ever since we arrived. Word is that he does the same with every group that stays here. I'll do my best to keep him away from you, but I can't promise anything. Even walls don't seem to stop that man."
Kaleesh shook his head. "There's no need to stop him. The next time he comes, send him straight to me."
A frown crossed Sassun's face, but he knew better than to argue with Kaleesh. "Very well. The next time he visits, he's your problem."
"Good," the captain replied with a nod. "Now, Arran, I suppose you're anxious to get back to your training?"
Arran couldn't help but laugh. "Good guess."
"Before you go, have you seen any more signs of those two Rangers?"
Arran gave a shake of his head. "They disappeared soon after we left the town. If I had to guess, I'd say they're still there."
Kaleesh frowned, his expression thoughtful. "Good," he finally said. "Perhaps that old man will be of use after all. But enough about that. Sassun, take Arran to his quarters. After that, we can start work on preparing the army for the Desolation. I mean to leave no later than three weeks from now."
A few minutes later, Arran found himself in a small cottage that appeared marginally better than the others in the camp. Though it was small and slightly rickety, the interior was clean and the walls showed no sign of collapsing any time soon.
Arran sat down on a creaky chair that stood next to the small desk at the side of the room, then produced the small wooden box he'd taken from the Sanctum.
Within, he knew, were twelve pills that contained a staggering amount of Natural Essence. If his plan worked and he succeeded in using Natural Essence to strengthen bloodlines separately, those pills should be just enough to improve one or two of the five bloodlines he'd received.
After a moment's thought, he put the box aside. Before he could use the pills, he first needed to be certain that he had the control he needed. And although he'd already practiced controlling the Natural Essence within his body while he was in the Sanctum, a single day's work was far from enough.
He took a deep breath, taking a few moments to prepare himself for the effort ahead. He'd already experimented with controlling Natural Essence like he did Shadow Essence, after all, and he knew just how draining it was.
Then, he closed his eyes.
In an instant, he became fully aware of the Essence within his body, both the Shadow Essence and the Natural Essence. He briefly took in the patterns the two types of Essence formed within his body, following their constant movement, then immediately began to control them.
Like before, the Shadow Essence was easiest to control. He could manipulate it with barely a thought, the patterns it formed changing instantly at the slightest command.
By comparison, the Natural Essence was far more difficult to manipulate. While it was also within his control, to consciously command it felt much like trying to hold a pen with his feet. While it was far from impossible, doing so nevertheless felt strange and unnatural, and his attempts were clumsy at best.
Fortunately, he'd already devised a method to deal with this in the Sanctum — to form patterns with Shadow Essence, and then copy those with Natural Essence. In doing so, he could improve his control, and gradually master the Natural Essence that pervaded his body.
Thus, with the road before him clear, he set to work, endlessly forming and destroying patterns of Shadow Essence, each time copying them with Natural Essence to the best of his ability.
It was difficult work that allowed no outside distractions, and as Arran fully focused his mind on the endless patterns, he had little idea of how much time passed.
Several times, he became too tired to continue, the constant mental effort too much to sustain. When that happened, he paused to eat and sleep, continuing again the moment he awoke.
And so, amid this constant effort, Arran's control gradually improved.
Then, one night, he suddenly opened his eyes.
"This should be enough."
Although he was still far from reaching perfection, he recognized that he had reached a point where any further progress would require more time and effort than he could spare. Whatever steps he might still make with another few days or weeks of work were too small to make a difference.
More importantly, he felt that his control had grown far enough to achieve his immediate task — to direct the Natural Essence within his body to strengthen only the bloodlines of his choosing.
What remained should be a simple task.
All he had to do now was direct a sufficient amount of Natural Essence to the bloodline he wanted to strengthen first. With that, he would be able to finally turn it into something truly worth being called a greater bloodline.
Naturally, Arran had already picked the first bloodline he would strengthen — the Hungerer's bloodline. After all, strengthening the Hungerer's bloodline would allow him to draw in more Natural Essence, which in turn would help him strengthen the others.
With his path already chosen, he decided there was no point in delaying the matter. Without hesitation, he reached for the small wooden box and took out one of the twelve pills.
Marble-sized and dull-green, the pill in his hand more resembled an overgrown bean than it did a priceless treasure. Yet to Arran's Sense, it blazed like a bonfire, the Natural Essence it contained plentiful enough that it was impossible to say how much of it there actually was.
Arran's eyes held a trace of unease as he looked at the pill. Simple though his task should be, he had yet to actually discover whether it was possible.
Of course, he had already tried to use the unbound Natural Essence within his body to strengthen the Hungerer's bloodline, but he'd quickly discovered that there was simply too little of it to make a difference.
After all, all but a fraction of the Natural Essence he had was already part of his body, strengthening his muscles, his bones, and the Blood Ruin, rather than freely floating around inside him.
The Natural Essence within the pill, on the other hand, remained completely unbound. And now, all he had to do was direct it to strengthen the Hungerer's bloodline.
A simple task, if his theory was correct.
He did not consume the pill in his hand immediately. Instead, he first focused his attention on the Blood Ruin, slowly forcing its endless consumption to come to a near-complete halt.
Though he had no true control over it, to direct its consumption was an ability he'd had even when he first received the Dragon's Ruin.
Back then, he'd used that sliver of control to consume the Blood magic that was threatening his life, inadvertently fusing the two bloodlines into the Blood Ruin.
This time, however, his goal was a different one — to prevent the Blood Ruin from wasting the treasure he was about to consume. And that was an even simpler matter.
Several minutes passed before Arran was finally satisfied that he'd suppressed the Blood Ruin as much as he could. Then, after a final glance at the pill, he threw it in his mouth and swallowed it.
Almost immediately, he realized he'd underestimated the pill.
He'd expected to find a rich fount of Natural Essence, but instead, what he found was an overwhelming avalanche, so vast that the sheer sensation of it briefly left him dumbfounded.
The single pill, he realized with some awe, contained every bit as much Natural Essence as he'd gain from several months of eating dragon meat. Even if he allowed the Blood Ruin to consume it, he had no doubt that it would allow his strength to make a noticeable step forward.
Still, he suppressed his awe a moment later, pushing the question of how the church could produce such things from his mind. Right now, his goal wasn't to simply increase his strength, nor was it to delve into the church's secrets.
Rather, his goal was to strengthen the Hungerer's bloodline. And for that, he needed his full concentration.
Arran struggled to gain control over the torrent of Natural Essence that raged through his body. While he'd spent the previous days improving his control of Natural Essence, everything he'd previously controlled was a mere trickle compared to the ocean of energy he now faced.
Yet it was too late to turn back. He had already consumed the pill, and now, his only choice was to either persist or have it be wasted. Naturally, he was unwilling to do the latter.
With no choice but to continue, Arran slowly worked to subdue the flood of Essence he had consumed, circulating it through his body again and again.
For some time, that was all he could manage — to endlessly circulate the Natural Essence as he fought to control it.
Yet as the hours passed, his previous practice finally began to assert itself. While truly controlling the torrent was still beyond his power, he found that by subtly manipulating it, he was able to split off thinner streams.
And those, he could control.
Upon discovering this, Arran did not act immediately. Instead, he took some time to grow accustomed to the dual task of both guiding the thick flow of Essence through his body and controlling the thinner streams. Then, when he was finally confident that he could do both at the same time, he let out a deep sigh of relief.
While the first step had proved far more difficult than he had anticipated, things should be easier from this point onward. Now that he controlled the Essence, all that remained was to direct it to the Hungerer's bloodline.
Arran took a moment to focus his mind, then immediately set to work. This close to success, he could no longer bring himself to wait.
With a single thought, he separated a thin strand of Natural Essence from the vast torrent, then promptly directed it to those places within his body where he'd seen changes when he first received the Hungerer's bloodline.
Yet the excitement on his face lasted only a few minutes before fading away. After that, a look of utter defeat took its place.
Arran had believed that he could strengthen the bloodline by drowning it in Natural Essence. It was a simple method, not much different from the way in which common Body Refiners could strengthen their muscles by continuously flooding them with Natural Essence.
But bloodlines weren't muscles, and what Arran had expected didn't happen. Instead of gradually absorbing the Essence, the bloodline seemed wholly untouched by the Essence he directed toward it.
It was like trying to fill a straw basket with water. No matter how hard he tried, not the least bit of Natural Essence was absorbed by the bloodline.
He could not help but let out a self-deprecating laugh.
Of course it didn't work. He still didn't even fully understand what bloodlines even were. With that the case, how could strengthening them possibly be that simple?
With a sigh, Arran reluctantly allowed the Blood Ruin to consume the Natural Essence that remained in his body. There was no point in continuing to try. Now that he knew the path he'd chosen was flawed, any further effort would naturally be wasted.
A wry smile crossed his face when he felt the strength spreading through his body as the Blood Ruin did its work. At any other time, he would have rejoiced at the sensation — even if the step forward wasn't overly large, he'd long reached the point where even the slightest bit of progress was hard to come by.
But now, all he could feel was disappointment. After all, compared to the potential of the Hungerer's bloodline, any single increase in his strength would be insignificant.
Despite his disappointment, Arran did not allow himself to sulk for more than a few moments. While he'd unexpectedly run into a dead end, that didn't mean there were no other paths available.
Nor, for that matter, did it mean that there weren't other things that demanded his attention.
He let out a final sigh as he stood up and stretched his weary body. Although he didn't know exactly how much time had passed since he started his seclusion, he guessed that it would at least be several weeks.
By now, the army should already be preparing for the journey into the Desolation.
Suppressing the lingering feeling of disappointment, Arran changed into a fresh set of clothes, then quickly headed out of the cottage to find Kaleesh. Before anything else, he would have to find out how much time there was left until their departure.
He found Kaleesh some minutes later, instructing a large group of soldiers as they practiced their swordsmanship. From the exasperated look on the captain's face, Arran guessed that these soldiers were among the less talented ones in the army.
"Not like that!" the captain shouted, eyes wide with anger as one of the soldiers clumsily swung his sword. "You need to maintain your def—" He stopped mid-sentence when he saw Arran approach, the anger disappearing from his face in an instant. "You've finally emerged!" He gave Arran an appraising look, then asked uncertainly, "Did you succeed?"
Arran shook his head. "I failed, and quite miserably at that. How long has it been?"
Kaleesh frowned before answering, "Just over two weeks. If you need it, there's still some time…"
Again, Arran shook his head. "Even a decade wouldn't make a difference. Not with what I was trying to do." He sighed, then asked, "Any news?"
"Quite a bit of it, actually," Kaleesh replied. "For a start, Old Baqi managed to find out who those Rangers were." With a slight grimace, he continued, "The news isn't good. They're with a lordling named Shir. His father was one of Kadun's closest allies, and he came to Sacrifice with four Knights under his command." The captain gave a mirthless smile, then added, "Though one of those Knights recently disappeared."
Arran swallowed a curse. "I suppose we already know what happened to that one. But he has three more Knights?"
"That he does," Kaleesh replied. "Moreover, from what I've heard, he's not the type to easily let go of grudges."
"Given our recent luck, that goes without saying." Arran sighed. "What about Nisra? Any word from her?"
"None," Kaleesh said. "Though she arrived in Sacrifice a week ago, she has yet to send word. I suspect Shir's reputation may have something to do with that."
Arran raised an eyebrow. "That bad?" Though he didn't know much about Nisra, she didn't strike him as the type to be easily intimidated.
"Worse," Kaleesh replied. "This is his second journey to the Desolation. On the first, his men slaughtered two entire armies from the Lords' Alliance. At least, that's what the rumors say. There were no witnesses to tell the true story."
"Sounds like a pleasant character." Arran rubbed his chin, then asked, "Any good news?"
Kaleesh shrugged. "The cooks Sassun found are quite skilled. So at least we'll get to enjoy a few good meals before we—"
"Wait!" In an instant, Arran's eyes went wide with surprise. "Of course! I'm an idiot!"
"Perhaps," Kaleesh said, "though I don't know if I'd go that far. But I take it there's a reason for this sudden insight of yours?"
"You'll find out soon enough." A joyful grin formed on Arran's face as he spoke. "And this time, I should be back in a day or two."