Daemon Gates Trilogy by Black Library

had not been removed in the process. 'I remember where I last saw the trail,' he answered after a moment. 'We'll have to find that area again and then work our way forward from there. I just hope the marks haven't faded away.' He didn't say it out loud, but he also hoped the smears hadn't been a product of his fever-addled brain. If that was the case, he might never find them again, and regardless of their origin they had seemed the only clue as to the thieves' where­abouts.
    They rode quietly for a while, letting the more conven­tional sounds of a large city fill the silence. Alaric was still regaining his bearings after being ill and asleep for so long, and he was also trying to make sense of the conversation
    he'd had with Heinrich. Since when had his big, bullying brother turned into such a reasonable man? Had the rest of the family changed as well? Had their father? Alaric wondered if he should go to Ubersreik after this and find out. It had been a long time, and it would be good to see his mother again.
    He was so caught up in this thought that he almost missed the flash of red off to one side. Glancing around, Alaric didn't see it again at first, but then it flickered into view once more, off on the right side, and he looked more carefully. A pair of stone columns flanked the end of the street, each one bearing the statue of some long-dead and long-forgotten hero, and on the right-hand pillar was a familiar smudge.
    'There.' Alaric moved his horse closer, which was a sim­ple matter, since the streets were no longer packed with revellers. 'They went this way.'
    Dietz stared at the column where Alaric was pointing, but finally shook his head. 'I don't see anything,' he admit­ted warily.
    'I don't know why I can see it and you can't,' Alaric said, rubbing at his eye, 'but it is there, and that means we can still track them.'
    Dietz nodded, and they set off again, following the marks, which still resembled blood, but had the sheen of oil to them, and had not faded in the least. Alaric tried not to think about the possible reasons for that. The trail led them back through the city and down to the south docks, across water-warped planks and wave-worn stones, right to the end of one of the longer piers.
    'What now?' Dietz asked, glancing around. 'You think they took a boat?'
    Alaric looked out over the River Reik, squinting against the sunlight reflected from the water. He could see well past the city's harbour, the water shining like silver, except in patches where the sunlight was swallowed up by small pools of crimson and black.
    'There, do you see that?' he asked Dietz. 'Those puddles on the river?' But Dietz shook his head. 'They're like the smears, only floating on the water,' Alaric explained. They definitely took to the river.' And thanks to the city's layout they knew which one. Altdorf had been built where the Talabec crashed into and was absorbed by the mighty Reik, and the city had three separate docks: to the east, for travel back up the Talabec; to the north, for travel up the Reik; and to the south, for travel down the Reik. From here the only direction a boat could take was south and east, towards Nuln.
    Dietz sighed, and Alaric felt a momentary twinge of guilt. The older man hated water travel. 'Guess we'll need a boat, then,' was all he said.
    They found a river barge that was heading down to Nuln, departing in a few hours, and booked passage on it. 'I'll keep an eye out for the puddles,' Alaric assured his friend. 'If they leave the river, or turn off down a stream, we'll get out and follow them. Otherwise we'll take this barge all the way to Nuln and see if we can pick up the trail again there.'
    Dietz nodded. This trip's getting longer and longer,' he pointed out.
    'I know,' Alaric agreed. 'I'd hoped we'd be heading back to Middenheim by now, but if there's a chance of getting that mask back, we have to take it.' He looked at his com­panion. 'Look on the bright side - we'll be out of Altdorf by