The Way Into Darkness: Book Three of The Great Way by Harry Connolly

stronger.
    Tejohn swung the spear like a bludgeon, bringing the butt end down on top of the old man’s head. If the tyr had still been close, he might have survived it. Instead, he was struck by the very end of the shaft, where the blow was most powerful.  
    The wood shattered with a noise that made everyone in the hall cry out. Without pausing, Tejohn spun back toward the two guards and, holding the spear blade by the broken haft, plunged the tip into the throat of the guard he had not disarmed.  
    He was no more than a boy, and he died with a look of surprise on his face. He hadn’t even finished drawing his sword.
    The guard Tejohn had disarmed stood frozen in shock. Who had trained this boy? Tejohn lifted a leg and kicked him square on the fake muscles of his cuirass, knocking him through the crumbling railing and over the edge of the balcony.  
    Tejohn immediately dropped the broken weapon and snatched up the fallen spear.  
    “WHO DARES!” he shouted. The rage in his voice surprised even him. It had come upon him before he had a chance to recognize it, but it was undeniable. “Who dares cross weapons with Tejohn Treygar?”  
    He suddenly noticed the tremble in his hands and the pain in his legs. He was not ready for a pitched battle, not with eight soldiers standing opposite him. Fire and Fury, he didn’t even have a shield, nor did he have time to take one from the dead boy behind him.  
    No matter how strong his anger, he wasn’t ready for this.
    But no one charged him. No one called the soldiers to attention or to form a line. They glanced at him, then looked down at the dead tyr. No one stepped forward to take command. No one moved against him.  
    Tejohn turned toward a sudden movement and saw Doctor Twofin pushing open a secret panel in the wall. It was too far to run, so Great Way help him, Tejohn drew back the spear as if it was a javelin and threw it.  
    The point tore through the old wizard’s robes, and there was a cry of pain as the doctor slipped out of sight. The spear point wedged into the wood, preventing the panel from shutting all the way.  
    Tejohn drew a sword from the fallen man and charged after him. Fire and Fury, his aching legs made him hobble, but he pushed onward.  
    The panel would not budge when he threw his weight against it. Fire take the man, he’d cast a stone block behind it.  
    Tejohn spun toward the room. The bureaucrat who had greeted Granny Nin stepped forward. One of the merchants, a well-fed older man with thinning gray hair and a mild way of not looking directly at anyone, came with him.  
    “Welcome, my tyr,” the merchant said. “My name is Amis Redegg. If there is any way I can bring you comfort in your great hall, please let me know.”  
    There was some muttering in the back of the hall. The door opened.  
    “No one leaves!” Tejohn shouted. He stalked the length of the hall, sword in hand. The three merchants with their hands in the latch paused uncertainly, then stepped back inside, letting the door swing shut.  
    Someone shouted to Tejohn’s right, a cry meant to muster courage. One of the Twofin guards charged at him, short spear held low.  
    Tejohn sidestepped the attack easily, caught the shaft, and threw his shoulder into the man. Instinct almost made him plunge his sword deep into the man’s belly, but he held back. When the man flopped onto his belly, Tejohn laid a heavy foot on his back and placed the point of his sword between his shoulder blades.  
    “Loyal, were you?” Tejohn spat. “Your tyr planned to drown innocent people all across the continent, but you were a loyal soldier and said nothing.”
    “I swore an oath!” the guard said. “My honor… If you’re going to kill me, do it!”
    “I don’t take orders from you.” Tejohn stamped down on the man’s arm. To his credit, the guard didn’t cry out. “Where are the tyr’s heirs, eh? Does he have sons?”  
    The people began to murmur and move about. Several of