Ajingara laughed again. "That sword is useless against me, tiny Anmah. Nothing can penetrate my scales, not your sword, not arrows, nothing.""I know that, Dirack," Frank said, although he had not until that moment. "But you will die in spite of that. I do know how to kill you.""How? You didn't a moment ago."The Anmah grinned. "Yisu told me."At the name of the Creator, the Dirack roared again, and Frank used that moment to jump from the stairs onto the creature's lower jaw. He looked down into its throat and saw a glowing orb less than a pace away from him."Foolish boy! I will kill you now!"Frank knew that was true, and he stabbed his sword into the orb just as a blast of fire surrounded him. The pain was excruciating, and he fell backward out of the Dirack's mouth, losing his grip on his sword in the process. He hit the ground with a smack and the sound of several of his bones breaking, which only heightened the agony. He screamed as his flesh melted off his bones, and he kicked

When they made camp, Frank paced back and forth impatiently as the meat cooked over the fire. Sophyra finally stepped in front of him."Come with me, Ga'briyel," she said, laying her hands on his chest."Why? I need to eat, Sophyra. My stomach is trying to digest itself right now."She smiled, took his hand, and led him around one boulder and then a second and a third until they could not hear the sounds of the camp anymore. "I know that, husband, but you are making everyone nervous with all your pacing. The meat will not cook any faster with you standing over it. Besides," she said, stepping closer, "I know of one way to help you warm up."With a grin, Frank picked her up, spun her toward the boulder, and pressed her up against it. "You do? And what might that be?"In answer, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. He groaned at the heat coming off of her, and, although he knew it was not true heat that would help him recover, it still felt good.When they returned to ca

"I will not. Do not worry about that. I just want to stop the evil that is going to be released at last light tomorrow, and I will do whatever is necessary to do so.""As will we, my friend," Telantes said softly, and then Frank stopped and closed his eyes briefly before heading east into the ruins. They passed hundreds of buildings, most of them more than four stories tall. Some looked to be twenty or thirty stories high, and Frank wondered who had built such things. All of them had glassless windows that looked like empty eye sockets and gaping doorways with no doors, and most had walls that had collapsed in several places. Frank did not even glance toward them as he walked. He just strode down the wide street, carefully stepping around fallen stones and bricks and skirting deep holes that appeared at random in front of him. His eyes were blazing brightly, and he held his sword ready.More than two hours passed, and then darkness fell rapidly. Part of the reason was that darkness al

Sobbing met his ears as he looked around the cell. It was different than the one he had been in. This cell had a table and chair and bed instead of a stone table. It also had an occupant. A man was seated on the bed, his knees pulled to his chest, and it was he who was sobbing. His hair was white, but when Frank took a step into the cell and the man's head snapped up at the sound of the door closing, Frank barely kept himself from cursing. This man was Anmah. What was an Anmah doing here? When the man saw him, he scrambled backward until he hit the wall. "You are Anmah! Who are you?" he gasped. "My name is Frank Mistri. Who are you, and what are you doing here?" "I am Debhida. I am here to provide sport for the Takosa and Dirack. Why are you here?" "Sport? How do you do that?"The man had relaxed slightly, and he shrugged. "I am set free every night at last light for the hunt, and every night they try to kill me. I cannot die anymore, though. I can only suffer. They will do the sa

“Wise or not, it is what I have to do.” He glanced at the other. “It is bad enough when I die, but if Dinton or Tero or, Yisu forbid, Sophyra dies, I will go insane. If I have to continue with this fight, I will do it alone.” He caught his breath. “I do not know any other way, Debaduta.”“I understand, Captain, I do, but I still think you are being foolish.”“You are probably right, but I have no choice. I must do this.”The Debaduta walked beside him for a few paces and then said softly, “How will you survive, Sainika? I do not mean that you will die between here and there, but you will starve, and you will be thirsty, and if you try to walk through these mountains, you will freeze. You have no horse, no coin, and no supplies. How do you plan on making it to Neyagin with nothing?”Frank stopped and glared at the spirit. “How far is the volcano from here?”“As the raven flies? About three hundred leagues, but there are many obstacles in the way. These mountains for one, and the Anupa