Scarred Man (38 page)

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Authors: Bevan McGuiness

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BOOK: Scarred Man
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‘No, Keshik!' Maida screamed. She dug her heels into her horse's flanks and started to gallop towards the rapidly deteriorating situation.

Before she reached halfway, Keshik stopped shouting and made a harsh, retching sound. Maida went cold as she saw vile blackness vomit out from Keshik and engulf the Tuk. A blast of energy rippled out from Keshik, knocking men from their horses. A few remained mounted and they raised their weapons in insensate fury. They turned on their comrades.

The killing began.

Achulti (ak-WUL-ti) — ‘leader of sixteen'; commander of a xuauhtli

Alberrich — criminal, based in Leserlang

Amatios — man of the Kuvnos

Ambra — Midacean witch

Ce Atli (SEE-at-lee) — Mertian doctor

Enst — former Reader's assistant, based in Leserlang

Eztli-Ichtaca (esh-li-ICK-tak-ka) — the ‘world of could be'; the Mertian spirit world that seers can glimpse

Guaman — the Rogue; leader of the Rogue Troop

Hinrik — former Bane of Myrrhini; Acolyte of Varuun

Hue — man of the Kuvnos

Huitzilin (wet-SIL-in) — achulti of the Blindfolded Queen

Ilmari — former Acolyte of Varuun

Iskopra — Apros Seagull; navigator aboard the
Queen's Quest
; Agent of the Blindfolded Queen

Ispaca — member of the Rogue Troop

Itxtli (itsh-LEE) — achulti of the Blindfolded Queen

Joukahainen — former Wielder of the Key of Varuun

Keshik — nomadic mercenary; Tulugma Swordmaster

Kielevinenrohkimainen — ancient Revenant, trapped for ages beneath Vogel

Kirri — woman of the Kuvnos

Maida — nomadic mercenary

Mayehqueh (may-EK-way) — lower class in the society of the Blindfolded Queen; they tend to be either servants or drafted Agents

Mixcoatl (mish-CO-atl) — achulti of the Blindfolded Queen, based in Usterust

Myrrhini — Eye of Varuun; late of the Place of the Acolytes

Nagual (na-GWAL) — Agent of the Blindfolded Queen

Nikolo — Midacean seer and oracle

Opochtli (oh-POK-lee) — Agent of the Blindfolded Queen

Ozcollo — member of the Rogue Troop

Patecoatl (pat-EKO-atl) — Agent of the Blindfolded Queen, based in Usterust

Quetzalxoitl (kate-sal-SHOE-it) — the Blindfolded Queen

Seppe — Midacean barman

Slave — slave of Sondelle

Tatya — shapeshifter

Tchinwukana (chin-WUK-ana) — Agent of the Blindfolded Queen

Tlatoque (LAT-ok) — military rank; commander of sixty-four xuauhtlis

Tochtli (toch-LI) — Agent of the Blindfolded Queen

Tynos — man of the Kuvnos

Vasilis — solpon of the Kuvnos, a nomadic tribe of the northern tundra

Xuauhtli (shoe-AH-ti) — the basic military unit of the Agents of the Blindfolded Queen, consisting of sixteen Agents

Xahnatl yatl (shar-NAT-yat) — an old Mertian expression meaning ‘you're welcome' or ‘it is nothing'

Yaotl (yah-OT) — Agent of the Blindfolded Queen

Youxinatl (you-SHI-nat) — Agent of the Blindfolded Queen; a ‘serf' in a ‘free' xuauhtli

About the Author

Bevan McGuiness lives near Perth with his wife and daughter. He has worked as a factory hand, geophysicist and laboratory assistant, and he is now a teacher of chemistry at a boys' school in Perth. He has been writing for years and has published short stories, book reviews, a trilogy and pieces for texts on science education. You can contact Bevan at [email protected]

Books by Bevan McGuiness

THE TRIUMVIRATE

The Awakening
(1)

The First Weapon
(2)

The Way of Purity
(3)

THE ELEVEN KINGDOMS

Slave of Sondelle
(1)

Scarred Man
(2)

Harper
Voyager
An imprint of HarperCollins
Publishers

First published in Australia in 2011
This edition published in 2011
by HarperCollins
Publishers
Australia Pty Limited
ABN 36 009 913 517
harpercollins.com.au

Copyright © Bevan McGuiness 2011

The right of Bevan McGuiness to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him under the
Copyright Amendment (Moral Rights) Act 2000
.

This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the
Copyright Act 1968
, no part may be reproduced, copied, scanned, stored in a retrieval system, recorded, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

HarperCollins
Publishers
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10 East 53rd Street, New York NY 10022, USA

National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication data:

McGuiness, Bevan.

Scarred man / Bevan McGuiness.

ISBN: 978 0 7322 8980 5 (pbk.)

ISBN: 978-0-7304-9784-4

McGuiness, Bevan. Eleven kingdoms; bk. 2.

A823.4

Cover design by Darren Holt, HarperCollins Design Studio
Cover images by shutterstock.com
Maps by Bevan McGuiness

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