and then recoiled so fast that the water seemed to be ripped open.  She had a small fish in her paw, clasped in her fingers.
	"I smell papa," Jasana said with sudden excitement, turning in Jesmind's lap.  "Papa!" she cried out when she saw him step into the small meadow.
	Jesmind nodded to him as he stepped up to them, and Kimmie let the fish drop back into the water and stood up.  "I take it it's over?" Jesmind asked.
	"What little it was," he replied.  "The Dals never had a chance.  I came to get you."
	"What's the matter, Tarrin?" Jesmind asked in a sober tone.  "You seem, upset."
	"I guess I am, a little," he sighed, sitting down at the side of the stream with Jesmind.  Kimmie sat down in front of him, and Jasana squirmed over onto his lap and started playing with the end of his tail.  "I know we have to do this, but I really don't want to do it.  I saw them fighting, and it didn't move me in any way.  That scares me, Jesmind."
	"Why?"
	"Because that's how I used to feel," he told her.  "I used to not feel anything except the fear.  I worked very hard and went through alot to get back to where I am now, and I guess I'm afraid that having to fight in this war is going to put me right back where I was."
	"Then don't fight," Kimmie told him simply.  "They have enough people for that.  What's missing one Were-cat?  They'll still have six."
	A small lick of fire appeared over his paw, created by the simplest of one-weave spells.  "This is why, Kimmie," he sighed.  "My magic could possibly turn a battle."
	"Listen to you," she laughed.
	"He's not joking, Kimmie," Jesmind said seriously.  "Mother told me about him.  He could burn Torrian to the ground, and nobody could stop him."
	"Killing people on that kind of a scale isn't something you take lightly," he sighed.  He shivered slightly as the memory of doing just that crossed over his mind, a memory of thousands dying by his magic when he destroyed the arena at Dala Yar Arak.  It was still a painful memory, and it always would be.  To even consider that he may have another memory of that magnitude sharing space with it in his mind made him very, very nervous.  Then he clenched his fist, smothering the small flame within it.  "I know what I have to do, and that's that.  I don't have much choice," he said in a strong voice.  "If I have to fight, then I'll fight."
	"Then don't worry about what may come, my mate.  Live in the moment," Jesmind said gently, putting her paw on his forearm.  She slid her fingers down to his wrist, where the manacle would have been, then clasped his wrist in a gentle grip.  "Right now is all that matters.  And right now, you don't have to worry about that."
	He looked at her, then he couldn't help but smile gratefully.  That did make him feel better.  "Unfortunately, right now, we do have to go back," he sighed.
	"Do we?" Jesmind asked pointedly.  "They can find us.  I'm certain that when the time comes for us to leave, they'll send someone to come get us."
	He looked at her, then he chuckled.  "You know, you have a point," he admitted.  "They can just come get us, can't they?"
	"They can.  I think a little time over here would be better for you than going back over there.  Why don't you magic us up some lunch, and we'll have a nice quiet picnic?" she asked with a gentle smile.
	"Why Jesmind, I'm shocked that you'd allow me to cheat," he smiled.
	"You can't follow the rules all the time.  It's not very fun," Jesmind winked.
	"I'll remember that the next time you ride me about conjuring around the house."
	"I'll have an entirely different opinion then," she grinned.
	"Fickle female."
	"Of course.  If I were predictable, what fun would I be?" she challenged.
	Tarrin laughed helplessly, then carried out the task she had given him.
	He had to admit, she was right.  A quiet meal with his mate, daughter, and a good family friend did do wonders for his mood.  He found himself not thinking about fighting or war or death at all, concentrating instead on observing Jasana's fishing technique as she practiced after eating a meal of roasted beef and fresh bread.  Jasana was too fidgety to be a good fisher, because she was too young to sit still and be patient.  She did try, however, but her paws or head invariably began to move, and those movements spooked the fish.  The first strike she did attempt missed, but it did manage to get her to drench herself with stream water as her paw slapped the water and caused a huge splash.  She looked up at her parents with limp hair, dripping water, then blew a drop of water off the tip of her pert little nose.  That made all three of the adults laugh.
	"You don't slap the water, cub," Kimmie said with a broad smile.  "You have to send your paw in claws first."
	"I didn't see you do that."
	"You weren't watching me, then," Kimmie accused.
	Tarrin was about to say something, but a voice emanating from his amulet cut him short.  "Tarrin?  Are you there?" Keritanima called through the amulet.
	"What was that?" Kimmie asked curiously.
	"It's someone I know, using magic to contact me," he told her calmly as he took his amulet in his paw.  "I'm here, Kerri.  What is it?"
	"I need to talk to you," she said deliberately.
	"Alright.  Give me a little bit."
	"I'll be waiting."
	"If she needs to talk to you, why didn't she?" Kimmie asked.
	"She wants to see me," he said, standing up and looking around.  There was a very weak strand coming out of the ground right at the treeline.  It would do.  "It must be something important, because she wants to see me face to face."
	"And how do you do that?"
	"It's complicated, Kimmie," he said dismissively.  "I'll explain after I'm done.  Alright, cub, you stay out of this," he warned, pointing at his daughter.  "It's hard enough to do it without having to worry about you getting lost trying to find me."
	"I don't like it when you do that, papa," she said fearfully.  "It so dark and scary there."
	"I won't get lost, cub," he told her gently, kneeling down and tapping her on the end of her nose.  "I know my way around there.  I just need you and your mother and Kimmie to protect my body while I'm gone.  Can you do that for me?"
	"Now I'm getting curious," Kimmie said, standing up and swiping at dust on her breeches.
	"It's simple, Kimmie," he said, standing up and moving towards the strand.  "I learned how to join my consciousness to the Weave, and I can use it to move through the Weave.  I'll go see Kerri by sending my mind to see her.  But when I do it, I'm not aware of what's going on around me, so I don't like doing it unless I'm in a place that's relatively safe, or I have someone to defend my body while I'm out."
	"Astral projection?" she said with a raised eyebrow.
	"Projection.  That's a good word," Tarrin said.  "I just project myself into the Weave, not into that Astral place."
	"I've never even read about this," Kimmie said in surprise.  "I didn't know that Sorcerers could do that."
	"Most can't," he said mildly, sitting down so that the strand moved through his body.  "Now do me a favor and hush."
	"Alright," she agreed as he closed his eyes and centered himself.  It was something that was relatively easy for him to do, so it was a short time between relaxing and centering himself on the Weave, and actually managing to project his consciousness out into the strand.
	As always, the strand picked him up and swept him along in the current formed by the power flowing through it.  He rode along that current, letting it sweep him into the another strand, then into a Conduit, then into a major Conduit, and then into the Heart.  The Heart never failed to awe him, inspire him, humble him, as he stared into the brilliance of the Goddess and marvelled at her, as he floated within the void pierced by the stars of the Sorcerers and the distant lines of the strands of the Weave beyond them.  Every time he came, it looked like there were more and more stars, as they began to actually compete with the darkness.  But despite their numbers, it was no difficult task for him to assense them as a group, and identify the unique signature that belonged to his sister Keritanima.  He went to her star and held his paws to each side of it, feeling its radiance bask him, revelling in the sense of her for that brief moment before using her star to locate her physical presence in relation to the Weave.  She was literally but a breath from the Heart, as any physical location on the Tower grounds would be.  He rose up into a Conduit and then circuited through the Weave, having to travel a deceptive distance to reach her physical location, since he had to do his travelling through the complex strands that did not follow a logical pattern to those in the physical realm.  But that distance was but the blinking of an eye in the Weave, where he could move as fast as he wished to move.  He reached her, felt her radiance through the strand, and knew she was there.  He could also feel Allia's and Dolanna's presences near to his sister, and that made him even more happy to come see her.  Tarrin wove together an Illusion of himself, an image, and then pushed it out into the physical world.  Then he pressed himself into that projection.
	Tarrin opened his spectral eyes to find himself within one of the many generic bedchambers that existed within the Tower, used by visitors.  They all looked the same and were furnished the same, and it could give one a sense of surreal disorientation to go from one of those rooms to another.  Keritanima and Dolanna were sitting at a small table, a tea kettle and cups resting upon it, and Allia stood just behind Keritanima.
	And sitting facing him, flanked by two of her daughters, was Shiika.
	Tarrin was a bit startled to see them there, but he recovered himself quickly.  Shiika could keep a secret.
	"I think I see why you called me here," he told his sisters evenly.
	"Hello, Tarrin," Shiika grinned.  She was as lovely--and as dangerous--as he remembered her to be.
	"One of the reasons," Keritanima chuckled.  "How are you doing, my brother?"
	"I'm alright, Kerri.  How are all of you doing?"
	"We do well, dear one," Dolanna smiled.  "I have missed you."
	"I've missed you too, Dolanna," Tarrin replied sincerely.  "Are things well with you, deshaida?  You look a bit annoyed."
	"I guess I am," Allia admitted.  "I had another exchange of words with Jula."
	"You two should just make peace," Tarrin chuckled.  "When did you get here, Shiika?"
	"Yesterday," she replied.  "Along with about five hundred of my soldiers.  The rest are coming up behind us."
	"Where are you right now, Tarrin?" Keritanima asked.
	"We're in Watch Hill," he replied.  "We just took it, and joined up with some of the Rangers.  I don't know what's going on right now, because I'm not with the others.  But I'd hazard to guess that we're going to make camp and set out for Torrian tomorrow."
	"When will you get there?"
	"It takes two days to reach Torrian," Dolanna told her.  "They will arrive two days from tomorrow.  If things go well, the attack will commence the following morning."
	"That fits into the plans I've made," Keritanima said, tapping her chin with a finger.  "How long will it take you to get here?"
	"If I wait for the others, it could take at least ten days after we finish with Torrian.  But I can get there in two if I have to."
	"Two?  How?"
	"Sorcery," he replied.  "Trust me.  If I need to get there, I could be there two days after you call for me."  He looked at them.  "I'll stay with the army until we either get there or you tell me to come quickly.  I get the feeling that they want me here."
	"We all want you near, dear one," Dolanna smiled.
	"You see, this is why I've always liked you, Dolanna," Tarrin smiled at her.  "We have a Druid with us, but they may need my magic to take Torrian."
	"A Druid?  Who, and why is he there?"
	"Not just a Druid, but also a bloody army of Woodkin," Tarrin told them evenly.  "Centaurs, mostly, but with a large number of Were-kin to provide some additional power."
	"How did they end up--"
	"Haley and Sarraya," he interrupted.  "They must have pled quite a case, because Fae-da'Nar decided that it can't turn its back on what's happening.  So they've assembled an army of sorts, and that army is on the way to Suld.  They've agreed to take Torrian because it's important to the defense of Suld, but after that, they're all going to race to Suld as fast as possible."
	"And now we have Centaurs and Were-kin," Shiika laughed.  "This is starting to turn into a world-wide affair."
	"It is a matter that concerns the world, Empress," Dolanna said calmly.  "If the Tower falls, the whole world will be changed because of it."
	"True enough," Shiika agreed.
	"Where is the enemy?"
	"That's one of the reasons I needed to see you," Keritanima told him.  "Three Ungardt clans attacked the army just outside of the Petal Mountains.  They attacked them literally as they came out of the mountain pass, and from what the Aeradalla have reported so far, the Ungardt have the ki'zadun pinned in at the pass mouth.  I don't have any reliable reports on what's going on right now, but I can tell you that the battle won't last long, and the Ungardt probably won't survive it.  But what it will do is delay that army by at least two days.  I'll take those two days, even if I don't like what it costs us to get them."
	That was grim news.  Every Ungardt army was a clan, and if the army was destroyed, then that meant that an entire Ungardt clan was going to be devastated.  Ungardt didn't take orders well, every clan-chief more or less commanding his own people.  Some Ungardt clans decided to come to Suld, but some of them obviously decided to attack the ki'zadun before they could get out of Draconia.  He didn't agree with that decision, but he had to agree that every day the enemy was delayed was another day they had to prepare for their coming.
	"We knew that was going to happen," Tarrin sighed.  "Sometimes my mother's people can be very stubborn."
	"I'm not too worried about the army now," Shiika told him.  "My daughters have been busy getting ready for our cousins to arrive.  We'll have all sorts of nasty surprises waiting for them."
	"Like what?"
	"Like making weapons that can harm Demons," Keritanima replied.  "Mainly arrows.  We intend to kill as many as possible as far away from the city as we can."
	That's part of it, one of the Cambisi sent her thoughts.  He looked at her, and realized that it was Anayi.  And he was surprised that he could hear her thoughts, since he was actually in Watch Hill.  We also made sure that no Demon can teleport itself within a hundred spans of the city walls.  That will keep them from appearing inside the city and wreaking havoc, which is what I'll guarantee they'll try to do first.
	"My daughters arrived with a very extensive list of preparations to make," Shiika added.  "They've nearly finished the list.  I'm very proud of them."
	We understand how serious this is, mother, the other sent her thoughts.  Our own lives and well being depend on holding Suld.  It was very effective motivation.
	"Yes, facing a total destruction of your life can really spur you," Shiika chuckled.  "We're going to be ready for them."
	"Any word on if they know we know they're coming?" Tarrin asked.
	"Nothing solid yet," Keritanima grunted.  "The spy is still hiding too deeply for Jula to find her, but I do think that Jula's keeping her pinned down.  I'd rather her be dead, but she's just as neutralized if she can't send any warnings."
	"We can help with that, your Majesty," Shiika offered.  "Now that my daughters are almost done with the preparations, I can spare one or two of them to scour the Tower for this traitor."
	"How will they find her?"
	The same way we do this,  Anayi sent with a smile.  We can hear as well as send thoughts. All we have to do is wander around and listen to the surface thoughts of those around us, and we'll come across your traitor eventually.  Thoughts are usually much less constrained than words or body language.
	"That is a clever idea," Dolanna said appreciatively.  "Would it hamper the work they have yet to do?"
	"Not if I only spare one or two," Shiika replied.  "Now that I'm here, I'll wander around and see if I can find her myself.  My own gifts are much stronger than my daughters'.  I can hear much more than they can, even dig a little without giving myself away."
	Few can hide secrets from our mother, Anayi said proudly.
	"You can hear thoughts?" Keritanima said nervously.
	"We're very discreet, your Majesty," Shiika grinned.  "Unless, of course, what we hear impacts our negotiations, of course.  I'm sure you'll find that out the next time we sit down to work out a trade treaty."
	Keritanima glared at the Demoness.
	"It's only polite to warn you, after all," Shiika said grandly, leaning back in her chair.
	Keritanima's cheek fur ruffled, her version of a blush.  "We digress," Dolanna said delicately.  "I think that the aid of you and your daughters would be welcome, Empress."
	"I'll send Anayi out as soon as we finish up here," Shiika said.  "We'll probably have your spy in the bag in three days, depending on how disciplined her mind is."
	"Is everyone going to get here before the ki'zadun?" Tarrin asked pointedly, changing the subject.
	"I think they will," Keritanima replied.  "My furthest troop ship is six days out, so all the Legions will be in place.  I have a solid report that the Selani are inside Sulasia, and they'll probably hit the Dals in Jerinhold in about six days, then be here three days afterward.  Ungardt longships have been arriving one after another for nearly a ride, and we have a pretty formidable number of Ungardt here.  They keep getting drunk and trashing the waterfront," Keritanima laughed.  "We need that army to get here just so they stop trashing Suld and start trashing something else."  She grinned at him, then got back to business.  "If the Ungardt do delay the ki'zadun by two days, that means that it's going to take them about fifteen days to march down from Draconia after reorganizing themselves after the attack.  Alot of what they had to do was get out of the mountains.  They'll move very fast once they hit open country, because Golblinoids can move fast without mounts, and from what I've seen, most of the humans in the army are mounted.  It's a huge army, my brother," Keritanima said soberly.  "I never dreamed there were that many Goblinoids in the world, let alone just here in the West."
	"How big?"
	"I don't have a solid figure, but tens of thousands would be a conservative estimate," she frowned.  "It's going to take every fighting man we've got to repel that kind of a force, but we can do it," she said confidently.  "We have the advantage, because we'll be defending, and we know what's coming at us.  They'll give it a fury of a run, but they're going to come up short."
	"May the Goddess make it be so," Dolanna said fervently under her breath.
	"Well, add Fae-da'Nar to your list, Kerri," Tarrin told her.  "If things go right, they'll march into Suld a couple of days before the army gets there."
	"We'll be happy to have them," Keritanima smiled.
	"I'm going to have to go," he apologized.  "It really upsets Jasana when I do this, and I don't think I want her agitated in her condition.  Remember, if you really need me, call me.  I can be here in two days at the most."
	"We'll do that if it comes down to it, Tarrin," Shiika assured him.  "Good luck with Torrian."
	Tarrin nodded to her.  "Cheer up, sister," Tarrin told Allia with a smile.  She was usually quiet when they were discussing things like this, but he felt that she was being just a little too quiet.
	"I will cheer up when you are with me again, deshida," she told him calmly.
	"I'll feel better too," he smiled.  "I have to go.  Be well, all of you."
	"May the light of the Goddess shine upon you, Tarrin," Dolanna said in farewell.
	"Be careful, brother," Keritanima told him with a sober look.
	"Good luck," he said, and then he withdrew from his projection and allowed it to dissolve.
 
Chapter 27

	The news he'd received from Keritanima didn't really improve his mood all that much.
	Tarrin opened his eyes and stood up in one smooth motion, causing the others to stop what they were doing and look at him.  Jesmind had Jasana firmly in her arms, probably to prevent her from running over and interfering with what he was doing, and it looked like they were doing nothing more than talking while waiting for him.  The look of relief on Jasana's face was evident and palpable, and it made him worry slightly.  If she was so afraid of what he was doing, it may cost her dearly on the inevitable day when she herself would be forced to do it herself, forced to choose between joining with the Weave or perishing from being Consumed.  It was what she would have to do herself.  He realized that he had to make her not afraid of it somehow, show her that it wasn't something to fear.  That way she could do it herself when the time came.
	"Well?" Jesmind asked as he focused on them.
	"The Ungardt have attacked the ki'zadun," he sighed.  "They don't stand a chance, but they're going to delay the enemy for about two days.  That will give us time to reach Suld first."
	"How long do we have to get there?" Kimmie asked.
	"Kerri estimates that we have fifteen days," he replied.  "It'll take us two to get to Torrian, one more to attack it, then about ten to get to Suld.  That cuts it very close."
	"You really think we can go from Torrian to Suld in ten days?" Kimmie said dubiously.
	"They'll have to find a way, Kimmie," he said bluntly.  "Either way, I think that they're going to do it without me."
	"What?" both Kimmie and Jesmind said quickly.
	"I don't think I'm going to travel with the army," he said, holding up his paw.  "I want to get to Suld fast.  I want to be there.  I think that after we take Torrian, we're going to go on to Suld on our own.  We can get there in two days."
	"How in the furies are we going to get to Suld in two days?" Jesmind asked acidly.
	"Sorcery," he replied simply.  "I'll summon an Elemental that will carry us to Suld.  It can get us there in two days, if it hurries."
	"What is that?" Jesmind asked.
	"An Elemental is a sentient creature made up entirely of an element," Tarrin told her.  "They can be made of earth, air, fire, or water.  I'll summon an Air Elemental to carry us to Suld, because they can fly quickly."
	"Fly?" Jasana said, her ears picking up and her eyes getting bright.  "We'll be able to fly?"
	"Well, the Elemental will be doing the flying, cub," Tarrin smiled as he walked over to them and sat down beside his mate.  "We'll just be along for the ride."
	"Oh, can we do that, mother?" Jasana asked in a suddenly sweet, excited voice.  "Please please please please please!?"
	"Is it safe, mate?" Jesmind asked dubiously.
	"Perfectly," he replied.  "The Elemental will obey me, and it will be very sure not to drop anyone.  I used one to get over the Sandshield."
	"They could summon Elementals with Arcane magic once, but the Elementals never obeyed willingly," Kimmie mused.  "Since Sorcery is a magic of nature, I guess the Elementals are more willing to obey a Sorcerer's commands."
	"I didn't know Wizards could Conjure Elementals," Tarrin said in surprise.  "I was taught that they couldn't do that.  That only Sorcerers and Druids could conjure them."
	"There are references to it in the books I've read," Kimmie told him.  "Maybe they stopped doing it for so long that people thought that they couldn't do it."
	"Possible.  I've come to discover lately that we really know almost nothing about magic," he said ruefully.  "We're just children compared to the Ancients."
	"The books I've read about Arcane magic agree with you," Kimmie chuckled.  "The Wizards during the Age of Power were said to be able to conjure Demon Lords and move mountains with their magic when necessary."
	"The same goes for the Sorcerers," Tarrin agreed.  "Maybe it's a universal case of inflated ego."
	"Papa said it was safe, mama!" Jasana pleaded with her mother.  "Can we go flying?  Please?"
	"Well, if your father says it's safe, then alright," Jesmind agreed.  "I don't think I'm going to like it, but if we have to get to Suld that bad, then I'll put up with it."
	"Have room for one more on that Elemental, Tarrin?" Kimmie asked with a smile.  "I want to meet this Phandebrass of yours."
	"Room for two more, actually," Tarrin said.  "I want to take Thean too.  He's very wise, and he may be useful in Suld.  Thean's like Triana, he has enough experience to be an asset no matter what you ask him to do."
	"If you can get him to agree to it," Kimmie chuckled.
	"Oh, I think he will," Tarrin said.
	"This means I can go?"
	"You're going, Kimmie," Tarrin assured her.  "Jasana would be too pouty if I left you behind."
	"I would not!" Jasana objected.
	"Yes you would, cub," Tarrin teased.  "You like Kimmie."
	"Well so do you," Jasana countered.
	"And so does your mother," Tarrin said, unruffled.  "Now then, it's starting to get a little late, so I think we should think about heading back," he announced.  "They should have everything pretty much well cleaned up by now."
	"Aww," Jasana grunted.  "I like it here, papa.  Can we stay here tonight?"
	"No, I think it would be best to stay near the others, cub," he told her gently.  "Don't worry.  As soon as we get there, I'm sure you'll like being there as much as being here."
	"No I won't.  They'll all talk to you and drag you away, then you'll come back and be in a bad mood, and that will put mama in a bad mood too."
	"I'll try not to get in a bad mood," Tarrin chuckled, "alright, kitten?"
	"Well," she hedged.
	"And I promise I'll take you with me if I go anywhere."
	"Alright!" she said happily, jumping up from her mother's lap.  "Let's go let's go!"
	They got up and then started back for the village, but they didn't get too far before Jeri met them on the path.  "Sathon sent me to get you, Tarrin," Jeri told him apologetically.  "And that Arren fellow wants to see you."
	"Well, we had good timing, that's for sure," Kimmie chuckled.
	"I said they'd come get us," Jesmind reminded them.
	"We should have made ourselves harder to find," Tarrin said.
	"You wouldn't have been able to hide from me, Tarrin," Jeri said with a grin.  "I may be a cub, but I'm still one of the best trackers among us."
	"Not if I cheat," Tarrin told him with a slight smile.
	"Well that's unfair."
	"That's the point."
	Jeri gave him a look, then laughed.
	It didn't take them very long to get back, and he saw that they did indeed have everything well in hand.  Most of the Dal bodies were gone, and the thick columns of smoke rising from the other side of the hill told him that they were cremating the dead.  The villagers were all out of their homes now, running around in dubious excitement, children following the Centaurs around in utter fascination.  Rangers for the most part occupied the village, but there were a few Centaurs and Were-kin there as well.  Not that the villagers were confining themselves to the village.  Many of them were out on the open fields surrounding the village, looking like they were doing what they could to help their liberators, from offers of food and goods to offering help erecting the camps for the night.  It looked like the Watch Hill villagers were very happy that the Dals had been overthrown.
	Jeri led Tarrin into the village, and Jasana looked around in fascination as they climbed up the hill and were eventually led into a small shop on the west side of the hill.  The inside of the shop was bare, but a large table and several chairs occupied the open floor between the door and the counter near the back.  Sathon sat at one of those chairs, and Mikos had somehow managed to maneuver his bulk into the room and kneel down on one side.  Karn was there, as well as Jak, and so was a sharp-featured Were-kin female with black hair and sharp, dark eyes.  Sitting facing the door was Arren, with two of his Ranger lieutenants.  Arren had not aged well.  His hair and beard were now more gray than dark, and there were dark circles under his eyes.  The burdens of being occupied had worn on Arren, it seemed.  Arren stood and smiled when Tarrin came in, but his smile dropped slightly when Jesmind came in right behind him.  It seemed that Arren remembered Jesmind just as well as he remembered Tarrin.
	"Ah good, Jeri found you," Sathon said as Kimmie and Jeri entered behind Jesmind.  "Thank you, my boy.  Could you go find Thean and ask him to come?"
	"Of course, Sathon," Jeri said with a nod, scurrying out.
	"The other Were-cats are unnecessary," the female said sharply, disdain obvious in her voice.  "Send them away."
	"Watch who you order around, woman," Tarrin snapped as he whirled on that female and stared down at her with dangerous eyes.
	"Yes, well, this is a meeting not meant for just anyone, Tarrin," Sathon said delicately.
	"I am just anyone, Sathon," Tarrin said sharply.  "I have no authority in this army."
	"Wrong.  You are the leader of the Were-cats, and your assistance is necessary to get them to obey," Sathon told him flatly.  "That means that you need to be here."
	"Fine, but I'm not telling any of them to leave," he said challengingly.
	"This is to be a war council, this is no place for a loose-lipped child and your harem," the female objected.
	Without batting an eye, Tarrin snapped his paw down and grabbed the female by the shirt.  Then he hauled her out of her chair and held her at arm's length before him, her feet dangling a good two spans off the floor.  "Your lack of courtesy is wearing on me, woman," Tarrin hissed in a voice that promised all sorts of unpleasant things should she continue.  "If you insult my mate or my friend one more time, they'll need six seperate baskets to cart you out of this room.  Do I make myself clear?"
	"Tarrin, let her go," Sathon commanded sharply.
	Tarrin growled and did as Sathon commanded, dropping the female unceremoniously.
	"Jesmind, Kimmie, would you please wait outside for us?" Sathon asked in a reasonable tone.
	"All you had to do was ask nicely," Kimmie said, flashing the dark-eyed female a flat look.  "At least we have manners."
	"Too bad they're nothing but bad manners," the female retorted quickly.
	"I hope you don't need that one, Sathon," Jesmind said in a brutal tone, reaching down and picking up a very quiet, nervous Jasana.  "She's not going to live to see