As to the remaining five thousand six hundred and eight warriors, they were spread among the sixteen huge Gothon-ian ships, their horses and ponies as well, including the spare mounts and draft animals, and the wagons and wains, too.
The huge ships themselves were nearly two hundred feet long stem to stern, and some sixty feet across at the beam. Each had five decks altogether, the top deck and four below. And of these four lower decks, three were primarily for horses and ponies and feed and water, though some wains and supplies were kept there as well; the remaining deck housed warriors and sailors and wagons and wains and supplies. When the huge ships had been loaded, four at a time they had been maneuvered by sail and by rowers in towing dinghies to come alongside the long, stone dock, and wide doors in the sides of the ships had been opened and long gangways run out. Up these great ramps the horses and ponies had been led by the warriors and into the rows of narrow stalls, as many as four hundred steeds in all, their number spread over the three horse decks, the associated warriors to be clustered into but one. Wagons and wains had then been towed up, and the warriors brought their goods last of all.
It took three days altogether to simply lade all ships with their complement of horses and ponies and warriors and wagons and supplies, but they sailed on the very next tide, just after sunrise the following day. And when they reached the waters of the Avagon Sea, easterly they turned, the swift Dragonships surrounding the wallowing Gothonian vessels as would paladins protect dowager queens.
A sevenday or so it would take them to reach the Iron-water, given a favorable wind. And so they fared easterly and easterly some more, to finally swing to the north, the goal of the great ships the port of Adeo just this side of the Ironwater, while the goal of the Dragonships lay beyond.
Three days they sailed through the blue waters of the Avagon Sea, the wind brisk and following and the weather holding fair. In the distance larboard of the fleet lay the coast of Pellar, the land slowly slipping hindward as the great ships and their escort plowed on. Often the Warrows would gather in the bow of their huge weltering craft and watch the dolphins glide through the pellucid blue waters 'neath.
In the afternoon of the fourth day out, they were joined at the bowsprit rail by Volki and Gildor and Riatha. For long moments all watched as the dolphins swam before and under and 'round the prow, now and again falling back to come leaping across the low ripples and waves pushed outward by the bow.
"Would that we could play as do they," said Linnet, her voice wistful.
"They know nought of war," said Volki.
Riatha looked at Volki. "But they do, DelfLord. -Know of war, that is."
"They do?" said Tipperton, his eyes widening.
Riatha smiled. "Indeed, for at times they do battle with sharks and other predators, especially when protecting their young. Ask Aravan; he knows."
Volki growled. "But they do not wield weapons and great engines of siege and other such. It is not as if sharks come knocking at their door, as did the Foul Folk knock at ours."
Rynna frowned. "How so, DelfLord?"
"With a great ram, they came, and battered for entry to Kraggen-cor."
Gildor raised an eyebrow. "Great ram?"
"Aye. Ogru-driven and under a shield of brass and iron cladding, on wheels it came, its iron head shaped like a mighty fist, mounted on the end of a massive wooden beam," replied Volki, clenching his left hand and thrusting it forward to demonstrate.
"Ai," groaned Gildor. "An evil thing is that ram. Whelm they call it, though I name it Vile."
"You know of it?" asked Tipperton.
Gildor nodded, as did Riatha, and Gildor said, "Many a gate has it sundered and many a city has fallen before its hard knock. Dark was the day long past when it tore through the gates of Duellin."
"It was on Atala, neh?" asked Tip.
Riatha nodded.
Tip glanced at Gildor, then back to Riatha. "Were you there when the ram tore through the gates?"
Riatha shook her head. "Nay. Though Rein, my mother, was"-Riatha touched the hilt of her jade-handled sword- "and she bore Dunamfs, the blade forged in Duellin by Dwynfor, the greatest swordsmith of all."
Volki grunted and nodded. "Even we Chakka hold Dwynfor to be the master of all bladesmiths."
"But what of Whelm and the gate?" asked Nix.
"And who attacked Duellin and why?" added Farly.
Riatha's silver-grey eyes darkened. " 'Twas Modru, his lackeys that is."
"I knew it," gritted Volki.
"Argh," growled Dinly. "Modru again. Someday someone will kill Modru, and that will be that."
Gildor shook his head. "Be not so certain, my friend, for monsters are always aborning… or are being fashioned by monsters of their own."
"Monsters or not," said Farly, looking at Riatha, "again I ask: why would Modru attack Duellin? Just out of pure spite?"
Riatha made a small negating gesture. "Although spite may have been part of it, it is not all. This is what my mother has said:
"Nigh the beginning of the First Era, Modru came unto Duellin to purchase blades from Dwynfor-axes, swords, lances, pikes, and the like-but Dwynfor would not craft him any, for even then Modru was among the shunned. And so Modru turned to other smiths, Gilian not the least, yet she nor any within the city would aid the Black Mage.
"Enraged and swearing vengeance, Modru sailed away. And some centuries later, there came the invasion of the isle by Spaunen and Rovers and men from far-off Jung. And among the engines they brought with them was Whelm.
"Boom! it knocked for entry, Boom! and Boom! and Boom! Driven by Trolls, at last the heavy gates of Duellin fell before the sinister fist.
"And the Rupt and Rovers and Jungarians poured through the breech.
"Hard-fought was the battle, every street, every building, every stride yielded in nought but furious struggle. Even so, the Spaunen and Kistanians and men of Jung slowly gained sway, for they far outnumbered the defenders of Duellin.
"And they hammered their way toward the armories of Dwynfor and Gilian and other bladesmiths of renown.
"Three-quarters of the city was lost ere the Lian of Darda Immer arrived, and together with the defenders of Duellin they hurled the invaders back into the sea.
"And they sailed away defeated and took the mighty fist with them.
"So says Rein, Lian Guardian of that time; so says Rein my mother."
Silence fell upon the gathering, broken only by the creak of rope and timber and the shssh of water along the hull. Finally Beau said, "Tell me, DelfLord Volki, did Whelm hammer down the doors of Drimmen-deeve?"
Volki shook his head. "Nay. Though battered to their limit, the great gates of daun yet stand."
"Ai," declared Gildor, "mighty are the workings of the Drimma to withstand such an evil token of power."
"Chakka cor," said Volki.
Rynna looked at Tipperton, her eyebrows raised. "Dwar-ven might," translated the buccan.
"Where is Whelm now?" asked Linnet. "Destroyed, I hope."
Volki shrugged. "I know not where lies Whelm, for the Squam took it away when they were routed. Yet when we caught up with them, Whelm was not at hand. I think it lies abandoned and lost among the crags of the Grimwalls."
Again they fell to silence, wind snapping the canvas above. But at last Gildor touched the hilts of his sword and long-knife and said, "Bale and Bane were forged in Duellin."