Where the Humanites lived, in the midst of this desertion, torches burned inside the walls, so that here and there a building would burst upon the darkness in a blaze of sullen light. But there was no sound of revelry or excitement. The Humanites hovered on the edge of war. They were tensely ready but they were not gay.
No one saw the four beasts who went swiftly and quietly down the dark forest avenues toward the palace of Anshan. Near it, Nelson heard the stallion's angry snort. The wind had brought him scent of his mates, those enslaved ones penned in the Humanite stables.
"Silence!" snapped Tark. "Do you want to rouse the city?"
"My Clan-brothers!" came Hatha's fierce thought. "Slaves of the Humanites. Should I rejoice?" His hoof-beats quickened. "By the Cavern, I'll free them!"
Tark sprang at his nose, his teeth clicking purposely just close enough to give the stallion pause.
"You'll ruin everything," Tark said furiously. "Our first task is to get Barin safely away. After that we'll see."
"He is right, Hatha," came Ei's thought.
Reluctantly, sullenly, Hatha consented.
"You and Ei must wait here," Tark said. "The outlander and I can move better inside. Keep watch and be ready if we meet trouble."
The two waited, the eagle perched high in a tree-top, the stallion sulking in the darkness below. Nelson and Tark were two slinking wolf-shadows as they went through the darkness toward the palace. They avoided the big open doorway through which they could glimpse the great torchlit entrance hall.