The heat of the furnace reached Judeau even here, where he sat on a carved stone bench next to Samina outside the smithy that Taskkarr had decided to hire. He could hear the two dwarves in there, haggling about the price for smithy and metal with the resident blacksmith - a tall, burly man covered in old burn-scars. By the sound of it things were going well. Taskkarr hadn�t roared yet.

Steelwing stood on the other side of the open door, leaning casually against the wall and exuding an air of boredom, while Samina was regarding the passing people and the grand interior structure of �Infantry Street� with a look that pretty accurately mirrored Judeau�s own feelings about this place: uncomfortable awe.

It seemed like all streets in here were named either after military terms or old kings, except for the main street that he had first stepped in on which bore the proud name of �Victory Road� and was so high-ceilinged that four rows of balconies overlooked it on each side. �Infantry Street� was a small back street, only one floor in height, but somehow still managed to look impressive.

Judeau figured it was because of the stonework and the brightly coloured frescoes, but it could just as well be the occasional nobleman or -woman, who would pass by on their way to something else, accompanied by a band of brutish-looking bodyguards and dressed to impress in sparkling colours and fine cloth.

Or it could just be the press of the people, the teeming crowd that made those brutish bodyguards necessary for the nobles. No carts were allowed on 'Infantry Street' - Judeau had noticed the sign at the entrance that said so - but it was easily big enough for two loaded carts to pass each other with a good berth - if there hadn�t been so much people in the way. Judeau was honestly surprised that the milling crowd could seem to flow so smoothly, without anyone stepping on another�s heel or toes, or tripping over each other.

And then, of course, there was the noise that always came with crowds. Chatter, shouts, laughter, all merged together to create a constant barrage of sound that was overwhelming in itself.

Each of these elements were impressive and a little bit overbearing by themselves, but became simply stupefying in combination like this. And this was just a small side street.

Samina leaned back against the wall and let out a puff of breath.

�Hopping hell, when I heard stories about the Great City, I always thought they were exaggerated - but here I am, and they weren�t� By the Gods, this place is just too much!�

Judeau nodded severely. �I agree.� He spread his hands to indicate the whole, mountain-like structure. �What kind of mind would construct something like this?�

Samina gazed at the street before them and sighed:

�The Ducarri mind� always have to show the world how high and mighty they are.� Then she turned an interested glance on him. �So you�re new to the Great City as well, then?�

�Um� Yeah.� Or, rather, to this entire world�

"Me too," Samina said in a subdued voice, looking around at the spectacle. "Kind of takes your breath away, doesn't it?"

A small smile tugged at the corners of Judeau's lips and he nodded. "Yeah."

"I mean..." Samina continued, as if half to herself: "...I've always wanted to see it. I've heard so much about it and... now that I'm here... I just..." She trailed off with a bewildered puff of air and sat back in contemplative silence. The argument inside the smithy quieted, being replaced by the subtle sound of money being exchanged, and soon the blacksmith walked out with a satisfied air about him and a fat purse in his hand, disappearing into the crowd heading further into the city. Steelwing straightened out his back and turned to Samina.

�It seems the deal is closed, so I will go and find a suitable place to train.�

�You do that. Just check back every now and then, okay?�

Steelwing seemed to consider this for a moment. �I will come back to this smithy once a day.�

�Perfect.�

The tall elf left, and from inside the smithy the sound of raised voices begun again, in a language utterly foreign to Judeau.

�My god, are they strangling each other in there?�

Samina laughed in good humour. �No, no. What you are hearing, my friend, is the secret language of the mountain smiths: Dwarfish. I don�t know why it has to sound like they�re gargling grovel, though.�

�What are they saying?�

�Don�t ask me! �Lesser races� are not allowed to learn it. And that means everyone who is not a dwarf.� She cocked her head to the side and listened, nonetheless. �It sounds like they�re disagreeing on something, though� but with that language it can be really hard to tell.�

The argument ended with Thirgynn�s well-modulated voice saying something in a very matter-of-factly way. Soon thereafter, Taskkarr came out, looking like a dark cloud on a stormy day, and turned to Judeau.

�All right, manling. It has come to my attention that I am getting off this deal very cheaply, and�� He glared back at Thirgynn, who stepped out behind him. ��my honour as a dwarven craftsman demands that I give you a better price�� He sighed. �What I am trying to say is that� you deserve a little payment for helping us find the Healer� and� I know what my beard is worth�� Another exasperated sigh. �So� I�ll make weapons for you too, if you tell me what kind you want.�

The gentleman inside Judeau told him to decline the offer, but the mercenary part of him reminded him of how badly he needed weapons, and that the weapons this dwarf could forge would surely be of high quality. However, he shut them both up and studied the determined look on Taskkarr�s face instead.

Declining is not an option, is it? I think I would insult him if I tried that.

A quick look at Thirgynn told him that the miracle-worker was as much a part of this deal as Taskkarr, and would be equally insulted. Inwardly, he shook his head. I can�t comprehend these creatures�

What he said, though, was: �Two scimitars and four throwing knives, then.�

Taskkarr grumbled something in dwarfish and then slapped his hands together.

�All right! Time to get working. Get into the smithy and strip, manling.�

�What?�

�Walk into this smithy here, and take off your shirt, so that I can take your measurements,� the dwarf impatiently explained, and stomped back into the smithy. Judeau, Thirgynn and Samina followed.

The two dwarves disappeared into the back of the smithy to get the tools they needed, and Judeau began taking off his borrowed clothes. As he started to unbutton the too large shirt, he became aware that Samina was still in the room and turned around to face her. She was leaning back against the wall, watching him with some amusement, and he sent her an admonishing look.

�Do you mind?�

A lopsided grin lit up her face. �No, no, not at all. I like watching handsome men get undressed.�

�Miss Samina-�

�Why? Are you shy?� She let the words hang in the air for only a second before she turned serious again. �I�m just joking. If you really want me to, I�ll leave, but� staying out there-� She pointed over her shoulder at the street beyond the door. �-Gets me all stressed up and uncomfortable right now� and you�re not taking all your clothes off, after all, and you won�t be showing me anything I haven�t seen before� so, is it okay if I stay?�

After a short inner struggle, he resigned. She�d probably seen scars before, too.

~
For a brief moment, Samina thought he would persist in trying to make her leave, but then his posture changed slightly and he gave a small, almost imperceptible shrug before turning away from her again.

�Okay, stay if you want.�

Grateful, she smiled. Sure, she was a big-city girl, but this place could suck the energy right out of you by sheer impressiveness, and she just hadn�t been prepared for it after being on the road for as long as she had. �Thanks.�

When he slipped the ridiculously large shirt off of his shoulders, however, she had to stifle a gasp. His back was criss-crossed with red, fresh scars, as if he had recently been flogged, and his right arm was covered in similar scars that made it look like it had been torn to shreds and then stitched back together again. He turned towards her, folding the shirt, and she saw the two blotchy, star-shaped scars on his chest, which mirrored those she�d spotted on his back.

No way� no way� then it was true, what I saw on that mangled cuirass; he�s been run right through, by a lance or a pike or something - twice! How could he have survived that? �That Healer must really be something�

He glanced up at her, and smiled a little self-consciously.

�Not what you expected?�

�No, that�s not the problem. I expected this, because you weren�t lying about getting hurt in that cuirass. The problem is that I can�t believe it. �Sorry to stare, Mr Judeau, I didn�t mean to offend you.�

�That�s all right, I understand how awful it must look.�

She smiled bitterly at him. �Hey, at least you don�t have any on your face � yours can be hidden.�

Still smiling, he regarded her for a short moment. �That�s true �Thank you.�

�For what?�

�For helping me see the positive side of this.�

A small, lopsided smile found its way to her face. �You�re welcome.�

He sat down on an anvil, and Samina studied him as inconspicuously as she could.

Almost all of the scars are on his back - and I would bet good money that he was impaled from behind as well - which is odd, really, because he doesn�t strike me as the cowardly type� not at all�

But hey, that�s just one more thing that doesn�t add up about this man. I mean, not knowing about dwarves, that I can understand; there are many places in this world where a man can live his entire life and never know of dwarves as anything but rumours and fairy-tales - but elves? How can he not have known about elves? They�re everywhere!

�Of course, they are much more rare than humans, but still. He should have known about elves.

All right, to be fair, this is Ducarron; the most human-dominated country on the continent. He could be from some small farmer-village, and that would explain his ignorance� but how, then, could he be a mercenary?

Struck by a sudden insight, she regarded the red scars a little more closely, absently reaching up to trail her thumb along the scar that marred her own face.

Hey, hey, hey, wait a minute� are those� demon scars? Could they be?

No, that�s impossible. If he got that badly hurt by a demon, he would have been eaten, because, gods on a stick, he must have been unconscious after that, and a demon would never spare an unconscious man. I�m just seeing things.

Let�s see� He�s a sword-for-hire who�s been badly maimed in a recent battle, and yet he�s new to the Great City; the one place in Ducarron where he could have been hired for a decent amount of money.

He knows nothing of dwarves or elves, and yet he gives me the impression of a man who has been around.

It�s almost enough to make me doubt my instincts.

But out of all these things, the one that really gets me is the way he keeps hesitating when he�s talking about himself� he�s hiding something, something big� If I didn�t have this good feeling about him, I�d think he was some kind of criminal.

As it is, he�s just driving me insane out of curiosity.

You are a strange man, Mr Judeau, and I intend to find you out.

~
Judeau kept feeling her eyes on him, and tried to tell himself that it was probably only his imagination and his self-consciousness about all the new scars, but he still felt a little relieved when the dwarves came back - In spite of Taskkarr�s brandishing of a knot-rope as if it was a strangling wire.

�All right, manling, on your feet.�

After some measuring, Taskkarr paused behind Judeau�s back, and after a short silence spoke with quiet contemplation:

�Manling��

Judeau repressed the urge to remind the dwarf that �manling� was not his name. �Yes? Ow! Don�t poke my scars! They�re tender!� He turned around to face the dwarf, only to have Taskkarr grab his right arm in a vice-like grip. The dwarf studied it closely while still speaking in that quiet, thoughtful manner:

��Why are your back and this arm covered by demon-inflicted scars?�

Behind him, Samina made a small, weird sound. Judeau stared at the dwarf.

�How- how do you know that they are demon-inflicted?�

Taskkarr glared up at him. �Boy, are you trying to annoy me, or are you just ignorant?� He pointed at an insignia on his right shoulder. �Do you see this? It is the badge of membership of the demon hunters� guild, and this-� He pointed at an amulet that hung around his neck. �-Is the mark of a dwarven demon bane. Demons are my job, manling, and I�ve seen demon-scars enough times to recognise them when I see one.�

�You exterminate demons for a living? Are they that common?�

�Well, common enough to cause trouble from time to time�� He fished out a small silver-coloured pendulum from a pocket on his chest and held it out over Judeau�s arm, where it began swinging wildly in a strange, unnatural pattern that caused Taskkarr to gasp in genuine surprise.

�Kratakch, manling! Has there been a demon incursion I didn�t know about? There are enough traces around you to suggest an army of the bastards! Explain this!�

Oh damn� now what do I do? Judeau froze, trying to think fast, I had no idea that such things could be detected� What do I say? � I could try to come up with a story of some kind, but Miss Samina might be able to tell that I�m lying and� and what would I say, anyway? �Well, you see, I was just walking through the woods when suddenly an army of demons attacked me�� Who am I kidding, there�s no way to explain this without appearing insane.

�Um� it�s a long story� I�d rather not talk about it.�

Taskkarr�s expression hardened, and Judeau couldn�t help but cringe as the dwarf�s iron grip constricted around his scarred wrist.

�Ow, ow, ow��

�I don�t care if you want to talk about it or not, manling. I need to know where these demons attacked and, if possible, why. Don�t you understand that a demonic force of that size could threaten this entire country?�

Judeau tried to pry the dwarf�s hand open, but he might just as well have attempted to lift a mountain, for all the good it did. �All right, all right, I�ll tell you, just let go of my arm!� After a short moment of hesitation Taskkarr released him. Rubbing his sore wrist and glaring a bit sourly at the dwarf, Judeau sat down on the nearby anvil and tried to figure out how to try to explain the whole mess. After a while of thoughtful silence he gave up, shrugged and gave the two dwarves in front of him a direct, if weary, look.

�Okay, you want the truth? You�re probably not going to believe it � I wouldn�t have believed it myself if someone had told it to me, but� All right. I met these demons in another world: The world that I come from.� He saw the confused expressions on their faces and held up a stalling hand. �I know how this sounds, but please hear me out.� He took a deep breath and looked away, fighting to keep a wave of painful memories down. �Me and my comrades of the mercenary troupe called �the Band of the Hawk� were� betrayed by� one of our own� He offered us as sacrifices to some demon lords called the God Hand. They� they summoned an army of demons to kill us and complete the sacrifice, and as you can see, I got very badly wounded. I was sure I was going to die there. But somehow... I didn�t. I woke up again, in this world, and it is not the world I knew.�

Taskkarr interrupted with disbelief:

�How can you be so sure of that?�

Judeau smiled in spite of himself. �Many things. First of all, magic was not as present there � there were some magical creatures like fairies, but they were incredibly rare, and there were no special magical abilities like Healing, just like there were no dwarves or elves� And I had never even heard of a country called Ducarron, let alone any monstrous Great City.� He paused for a moment. �And� the one thing that really convinced me, was the moons. There are two here. Where I come from, there was only one.�

After a short pause, Taskkarr snorted decisively.

�Really, manling, do you expect us to believe this fairy-tale?�

�No,� he answered honestly, �I told you you wouldn�t � I didn�t at first, myself � but the Healer did, and he thought that perhaps it was the presence of the demons that caused a� rift of some kind, that I� fell through...�

�I believe it,� Samina interrupted, and Judeau gave her a surprised look as she walked up to stand beside the dwarves. �I believe he�s telling the truth.�

Taskkarr gave her a dubious look. �Explain.�

�For one thing, it is obvious that he himself believes this story. Sure, lunatics also believe their own fantasies to be true, but Mr Judeau isn�t crazy � Nothing about the way he is has led me to think that� so I believe him. And it explains a lot of things.� She shrugged, �I have never before had reason to doubt my instincts about people, or my ability to tell when someone is lying, so I�m not going to start doing that now.�

Taskkarr regarded the two humans thoughtfully for a while, rubbing his chin. �Well� far be it from me to question your sharp eyes, Samina� and stranger things have happened around demons; they twist and warp the reality of things around them, so I suppose it�s not impossible that this manling got caught up in something like that� especially not with the incredible amount of demonic power that must�ve been there�� He held up the pendulum again, and it began swinging in that strange pattern once more. ��And the pendulum doesn�t lie. They were there all right. Right on top of him, too.�

He tucked away the pendulum again and crossed his arms over his chest.

�Then I have just one more question: Why is your back covered with scars?�

The not-so-subtle accusation in the dwarf�s voice made Judeau�s blood begin to boil for some reason, and he couldn�t really keep the anger away when he glared at Taskkarr and coldly replied:

�I did not flee, if that�s what you think.�

�Really?� Taskkarr�s expression was as cold and hard as a rock. �Your scars tell a different story.�

Judeau had had a long, confusing day, full of tension and strange new impressions, and it was beginning to take its toll on him. This conversation was bringing back memories that he didn�t want to deal with right now, and he felt that he should get away from there and calm down before he did or said something that he would surely regret. He stood and walked over to where he had placed his clothes. �I don�t have to listen to these accusations.�

�They�re not accusations, it�s professional interest: I don't make armour for cowards!�

That was the last straw. Something inside Judeau snapped, and he turned on the spot, thrusting an accusing finger at Taskkarr.

�Now listen here you little runt! I would have fought alongside my friends until my very last drop of blood, but yes, I tried to escape. Not out of cowardice, nor self-preservation, I did it because I was the only one who had a chance to save our Major!�

�So this Major of yours-� Taskkarr interrupted, angered by the insult, �-Couldn�t fight for himself, eh?�

A cold coat of ice descended on Judeau�s anger. His back straightened, his hands tightened into fists, and his voice became a sharp, menacing blade of frost as he replied; �Don�t jump to conclusions, little dwarf, you don�t have any idea of what you�re talking about. She could fight better than any one of us � but if she had died, then we would truly have lost everything. Understand that every last one of us would have given our lives for her. I and Pippin were the ones who got the chance.� He slowly walked back towards them, not taking his eyes off of Taskkarr�s. �I got these scars when I shielded her body with my own. If you want to call that cowardice, then yes: I am guilty as sin.�

The tension between them could have been cut with a knife. Any second Judeau expected the dwarf to take a punch at him, and part of him hoped that he would � it would give him a reason to hit back. They glared unwaveringly into each other�s eyes, neither of them about to back down anytime soon.

Then, suddenly, the dwarf�s face lit up in a big, genuine grin. He grabbed one of Judeau�s hands with both of his, and shook it vigorously.

�You have guts, boy! I like that! And I don�t need Samina to tell me that you meant what you said, so your scars are honourable! Wear them with pride!�

Judeau�s anger ground to a confused halt. ��What?�

Taskkarr let go of his hand and beamed at him. �I like you! You were ready to fight with me, and that�s not somehing that any coward or liar would have done! I take back all my accusations, you are a brave and honourable man!�

Still confused, Judeau decided to try again. ��What?�

�Do you want any special patterns or adornments or anything on your equipment?� the dwarf asked conversationally, picking up a hammer and weighing it in his hand.

Judeau felt the anger drain out of him, leaving nothing behind except confusion and a heavy weariness. He flopped down on the anvil again and rubbed his forehead with his hands. �Huh?�

�I said: would you like some adornments or patterns on your equipment?�

�Uh� I don�t know��

�You said your band was called �the band of the hawk� or something, right? How about some stylised bird-of-prey shapes? Would you like that?�

�Um� sure� nice.�

�Well then, boy, you�re free to go, I�m all done with you. Come back in about six days and we�ll see how much progress we�ve had by then, OK?�

Judeau just nodded tiredly, and went to put on his clothes.

*
As he walked out of the smithy, Samina was waiting for him. She stopped him with a gentle hand on his arm.

�Mr Judeau� please don�t be too angry with Taskkarr. It�s just that he�s� a dwarf. He can�t help being strange and provocative to us humans� he�s just born that way.�

Judeau watched her for a moment. She had that bright � albeit apologetic - smile on her face again, and he could feel the corners of his lips respond to it. Strangely enough, he also began feeling better and a little less confused� an odd, tickling sensation was beginning to build in his stomach. It worked its way up to his chest where it caused his breathing to become erratic, and before he knew it, it burst out of his mouth in a full-blown, hearty laugh. He felt the tension and confusion begin to drain away from him, right out through the laughter.

�Hehehe, �he can�t help it�! Hahahaa!�

Samina began giggling too, �Gods, that did sound stupid, didn�t it? �Don�t be mad at him; he was born as a jerk.�� She joined in the laughter, and they had to lean on each other for a while, as they laughed all their tensions and worries away. People walking by gave them some odd looks, but it didn�t bother them; it felt so good to just laugh for no special reason, other than the laughter itself.

After a while, though, they composed themselves and smiled at each other with some kind of hesitant, newfound camaraderie.

�That was fun.� Samina said and wiped her eyes with her sleeve.

�Yes, it was.� Judeau chuckled.

She looked up at him, still smiling. �You know something, Mr Judeau? I think that since both you and I are going to have to wait for Taskkarr and Thirgynn to finish their work - and Steelwing will be training, training, training - we could keep each other company for the rest of this week. That way you will have someone with you who knows that you�re from another world, and can help you seem a little more� at home � and I won�t have to be alone.�

�Hmm� that sounds reasonable enough.� He smiled. �Unless you only want to be with me to see me mess up and make a fool out of myself.�

She tried to look serious. �Sir! You offend me! I would never attempt to use your ignorance for my own amusement, no matter how tempting it may be!�

�How reassuring.�

�In fact, to show you my good will, I will buy you a drink.� She took his arm and began walking. �There�s this elven speciality that you just have to sample��

�Now, why does that make me feel so apprehensive?�

But he was smiling. It was reassuring to think that he was not going to be alone in the mind-numbing Great City for a whole week, and Samina didn�t seem like such bad company. They could probably be friends.

It would feel good to have friends again.

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