There seem to be an awful lot of pigeons about today. They blanket the courtyards and pathways, cooing and fidgeting and fighting. They’re as flighty as ever, wheeling away in great flocks as soon as anyone approaches. All but the odd one or two, who hop on the spot half-heartedly, or else fly in a circle and quickly land again ( Read more... )

It’s dark when the Keep’s newest guests arrive. The cold night air has seeped into the stones of the barracks sending a chill throughout the rooms. No fire has been laid, no lamp lit to beat back the cold or dispel the dark. Each cell remains exactly as it has for months on end, almost as though no one were expecting the small rooms to be occupied ( Read more... )