'How do we approach them?' asked Korrin. 'We do not. We wait for them to approach us.' 'And if they do not?' 'Then we go home hungry. Hunting is a question of patience. The tracks show the deer follow this trail to drink. We sit here and we let the hours flow over us. Your friend Hogun chose to sleep the time away, which is as good a way as any - so long as someone stays on watch.' 'You are a calm man, Prasamaccus. I envy you.' 'I am calm because I do not understand hate.' 'Has no one ever wronged you?' 'Of course. When I was a babe a drunken hunter rode his horse over me. All my life since I have known pain - the agony of a twisted limb, the hurt of being alone. Hatred would not have sustained me.' The dark huntsman smiled. 'I cannot be like you, but being with you calms me. Why are you here in Pinrae?' 'I understand we are seeking a sword. Or rather that Thuro is seeking a sword. He is the son of a king - a great king by all accounts -who was murdered a few months ago.' 'From which land across the water do you come?' Prasamaccus sat back and stretched his leg.
