"Welcome; welcome back, Brother Mage,” the beaming major-domo crowed. “It is good to-"
Loras, resplendent and terrifying in his scarlet apparel, stepped from the shadows. “Greetings, Mage Doorkeeper. I trust you are well."
Doorkeeper's smile fell; he looked from the Questor to the Magemaster and back again, his expression like that of a confused, frightened child.
In a dull voice he said, “Greetings, Questor Loras. I am under orders to report your arrival to Lord Thorn."
Before Kargan or Loras could protest, the old man shuffled away with surprising speed, and they were left alone.
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Chapter 5: Undead Or Alive
General Quelgrum had stood watch many times in his long life. He had often felt the cold, leaden sensation of fearful anticipation in the pit of his stomach; at other times, he felt only boredom. The old soldier thought he had experienced the gamut of human feeling and emotion, but something seemed different about this watch: a sick sensation of unnameable dread. The stark, skeletal trees around the camp creaked in the evening breeze, and Quelgrum heard the eerie, intermittent cries of a screech-owl in the distance.
However, these sounds did not disturb him as much as the utter, cloying silence that clung between them.
At last, the owl finished its mournful ululation and the breeze died away; silence reigned, and the General shivered, as if the very stillness were seeping into his bones.
Something's coming, he thought, although he had never before believed in fortune-tellers, predestination or precognition. Something bad.
At the sudden rustle of fallen leaves behind him, his heart leapt in his chest and he wheeled, his finger taking first pressure on the trigger of his automatic rifle, which he held at chest height, ready to fire.