I am sure some of my people here would like to do that to you.”

“I have noticed.”
“We are close to the Chaos Wastes here. People are suspicious. I would not take it personally if I were you.”
He shook his head ruefully, and his sad smile widened. Ulrika realised that, given the chance, she could actually like the man. “I don’t see how I could take being burned at the stake other than personally.”
“You have a point.”
“Thank you,” he said with a faint trace of irony. Suddenly he cocked his head to one side. He seemed to be listening.
“What is it?” Ulrika asked. She felt suddenly afraid.
“Hush! I think there is something out there.” He closed his eyes and his face went slack. She sensed the play of power around him. Through his shuttered eyelids she saw a glowing light, as if his eyeballs had become tiny suns that could shine through flesh! The muscles on his jaw tightened. He muttered words in the arcane tongue under his breath.
His eyes snapped open. She could see the light in them fading, like the embers of a dying fire. He reached out and touched her on the arm. His grip was surprisingly strong for a scholar. “Remain calm,” he said. “Show nothing on your face. There are things out there and we must get away from this parapet.”
“We must give the alarm.”
“We will give no alarms if we are shot by a sharpshooter,” he said softly.
“Who could hit us in this light?”
“Trust me,” he said guiding her along the parapet. “Walk normally and then climb up the ladder into the watchtower.”
“What is going on?” Ulrika asked. The urgency in the magician’s voice had communicated itself to her.
“There are skaven out there. The ratmen followers of Chaos.”
“How do you know?” she asked and then cursed herself. She already knew the answer. He was a magician. She altered the question slightly to cover her mistake. “That they are skaven, I mean.”
“I have studied the minions of Chaos extensively,” he said, in his quiet voice. Ulrika knew that his calm tone was meant to reassure her, to keep her calm. It annoyed her slightly that he thought she would need such treatment. If he noticed he gave no sign. “It’s why the dwarfs hired me, after all.”
They had reached the ladder. “Climb. I will follow you in a moment.