‘About what?’ Jori asks, coming over to stare.
‘I’m not sure yet,’ says the bard. ‘This one is in Old Gott, from hundreds of years ago. These are Thriantan, even older, and this one is from The Gormalechnicon by Rabdul Bunhazred. I’ve met him, you know.’
‘Why are some of them marked?’ Rue asks. ‘Are they important?’
‘Let me see,’ says the bard. ‘This one says:
’Neath thorny mound, by swamp and grass,
The legend rests ’til evil’s passed.’
‘Some kind of riddle,’ Jori says. ‘But it must be important. They came all the way up here and tore through the library to find it.’
‘Here’s another circled one,’ says the bard.
‘Bane of the iron god: hoarder of Gifts,
Hidden by thorned wood, while Watchers exist.’
‘There’s a candle down there,’ says Rue, spotting a cluster of items on a broken chair. ‘They must have left it here.’
Jori goes over, rifling through pieces of charcoal, a chunk of flint, an empty clay bottle. Her fingers pinch at the abandoned candle’s wick, and then she jumps back, raising her sword.
‘It’s still warm!’ she cries. ‘They’re here! They’re here!’
As soon as the words leave her mouth, there is a grinding, crunching noise from outside. Stone blocks and rubble from the pile by the doorway come crashing down, blocking the entrance, cutting off the daylight, sealing them inside.
‘We’re trapped!’ Rue shouts, making the sparrow flutter madly in its cage.
Jori dashes to the blocked doorway, where a small gap at the top still remains. She jumps back a second later as an arrow pings off the stonework. ‘Whiskers! That nearly took out my eye!’
‘Did you see how many?’ the bard asks. ‘Are they Endwatch?’
‘There’s at least five,’ Jori says. ‘Black, hooded cloaks. It looks like the Watch.’
‘Clarion curse them!’ The bard slaps his paw against the wall, dislodging a sheet of parchment.
‘I can see two leaving,’ says Jori. She has crept to the hole again and is peering out, trying not to let herself be seen. ‘The others have gone into the ruined buildings for cover. Damn it!’
She jerks back as another arrow pings from the rubble.
‘Hold your fire!’ she shouts out. ‘We’re just travellers, looking for shelter! We mean you no harm!’
The sound of laughter echoes back to them. ‘Nice try! We know who you are, dusk wraith. And the bard with you must be part of your stupid Foxguard. You can stay in there and starve, or step out and be shot. Either way, you’re all dead.’
‘Nixha take them!’ says Jori. ‘How did they find out about the guard?’
The bard doesn’t answer. He is staring at the piece of parchment in his paw. His ears are trembling and his fingers shake. He looks terrified.
‘What is it?’ Rue asks, hardly daring to find out if something could be worse than getting trapped in a scary tower by armed villains. ‘What does it say?’
The bard licks his lips. He looks at Jori and Rue with wide, startled eyes. ‘It’s another piece of prophecy,’ he says, then reads aloud:
‘Twelve Gifts, One Ear: a hero grand.
The razor’s back blocks seeker’s hand.’
‘But what does it mean?’ Rue asks, his eyes brimming with tears. ‘Why are you so frightened?’
‘I understand it now,’ says the bard. ‘I know why they came here.’
‘Why?’ Jori moves next to Rue and takes his paw. Both of them hold their breath.
‘They’ve found out,’ says the bard. ‘They’ve found out the very thing we’ve always dreaded. The one thing we wanted to keep from them.’
The bard closes his eyes, scrunching the parchment in his clenched fist.
‘They know where Podkin is. They know he’s hiding in Thornwood, and they’ve gone to kill him.’
THE FIVE REALMS SERIES
The Legend of Podkin One-Ear
The Gift of Dark Hollow
The Beasts of Grimheart
Uki and the Outcasts
About the author and illustrator
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kieran Larwood has loved fantasy stories since reading The Hobbit as a boy. He graduated from Southampton University with a degree in English Literature and then worked as a Reception class teacher for fifteen years. He has just about recovered. He now writes full-time although, if anybody was watching, they might think he just daydreams a lot and drinks too much coffee.
ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR
David Wyatt lives in Devon. He has illustrated many novels but is also much admired for his concept and character work. He has illustrated tales by a number of high-profile fantasy authors such as Diana Wynne Jones, Terry Pratchett, Philip Pullman and J. R. R. Tolkien.
PRAISE FOR THE FIVE REALMS SERIES
‘Will entertain everyone: Podkin One-Ear
already feels like a classic.’
BookTrust
‘The best book I have ever read.’
Mariyya, age 9, Lovereading4kids
‘Jolly good fun.’
SFX
‘I just couldn’t put it down.’
Sam, age 11, Lovereading4kids
‘Five stars.’
Dylan, age 12, Lovereading4kids
‘Great stuff and definitely one to watch.’
Carabas
‘An original fantasy with … riveting adventure,
and genuine storytelling.’
Kirkus
‘A joy to read and absolutely world-class.’
Alex, age 10, Lovereading4kids
‘A great bit of storytelling.’
Andrea Reece, Lovereading4kids
‘Rich with custom, myth, and a little touch of magic.’
Carousel
‘A story for children who enjoy fantasy, quests
(and of course rabbits).’
The School Librarian
Copyright
First published in 2019
by Faber & Faber Limited
Bloomsbury House
74–77 Great Russell Street
London WC1B 3DA
This ebook edition first published in 2019
All rights reserved
Text, maps pages viii-ix and chapter head illustrations © Kieran Larwood, 2019
Internal illustrations © David Wyatt, 2019
Cover Illustration © Fernando Juarez, 2019
The right of Kieran Larwood and David Wyatt to be identified as author and illustrator of this work respectively has been asserted in accordance with Section 77 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly
A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 978–0571–34281–5
Uki and the Outcasts Page 21