He didn't appear to own a cloak or even a blanket. Felix was glad that he had his red Sudenland wool cloak to huddle under. He did not doubt that the nights would get pretty cold. He did not look forward to the prospect of a night on cold ground.

"How long till we get there?" he asked.

"We're making good time. If we take the short path through the Bone Hills, we'll be there in two, three days at most."

"I've heard bad things about the Bone Hills," Felix said. It was true. Then again, there were few places beyond the cities and towns of the Empire that he had not heard bad things about. At once Gotrek and Snorri looked up, interest written all over their faces. It never ceased to amaze Felix that the worse things sounded, the happier a Slayer looked.

"The skaven from the mine used to haunt them, and attack travellers. They'd come down and raid the farms as well. Nothing to worry about now though. We've seen them off," Varek said. "Snorri and I came all the way down here in the cart by ourselves, never sniffed a hint of trouble."

The two Slayers slumped back into apathetic contemplation of their hangovers. Somehow Felix was not reassured. In his experience, trips through the wilderness never went smoothly. And something about the mere mention of skaven caused that rat-like shape he had noticed back in the wood to begin niggling worryingly at the back of his mind.

"You came all the way here yourselves?" Felix asked.

"Snorri was with me."

"Are you armed?" Felix asked, making sure that his own longsword was within easy reach.

"I have my knife."

You have your knife! Oh good! I'm sure that will be very useful if skaven attack you."

"Never saw any skaven. Just heard a little scuttling some nights. Whatever it was, I think Snorri's snoring scared it away. Anyway, if something attacked I have my bombs."

"Bombs?"

Varek fumbled inside his robe and produced a smooth black sphere. A strange metal device appeared to have been glued to the top. He handed it to Felix who inspected it closely. It looked like if you pulled the clip on top, it would come free.

"Be careful with that," Varek said. "It's a detonator. You pull that, it tugs the flint striker which lights the fuse which sets off the explosive. You've got about four heartbeats to throw it, then—boom!"

Felix looked at it warily, half-expecting the thing to explode in his hand.

"Boom?"

"It explodes. Shrapnel everywhere. That's assuming the fuse fires. It sometimes doesn't. About half the time, actually, but it's very ingenious. And of course, very, very occasionally they go off for no reason at all.