Chapter 76

The cave entertainers took their places on the floor. There were dozens of them. They were dressed as fighters with the armour of beasts. Lion heads and manes, vulture-winged frocks, and ghostly weapons Andrew had never seen before. Strange swords, armours, and javelins.

They immersed themselves in war exercises that seemed more like a dance of acrobatics than about brute vigour or strength. They ebbed and spurted like a stream of water; their actions were fluid, not aggressive. They moved through the air as if they were fish drifting in the water. Leafing and twirling, they barraged and protected with such accuracy and confidence as to transfer the act of fighting into a ballet of beauty.

Cavin could not see the dance, but he could feel it. He knew it well. He confessed to Andrew, “They were trained by you, milord. Their ancestors were trained by you. The original keeper of the soul.”

"I did?" Andrew frowned as he watched the warriors.

"Yes, milord. You said