The horses took the bridge at a near-gallop. The coach's four passengers bounced around violently on the padded seats, but none of them complained. Sometimes, haste was necessary... and this was one of those times. In fact, when the driver whistled and brought the coach to a sudden stop, it was urgency and not relief that caused one of the passengers to stick his head out the window and inquire as to the problem.
"Roads flooded!" the driver shouted. He pointed. A stream of water of unknown depth stretched across the wooden road in front of them.

"What!?" said Anton Sedgeworth. He was a middle-aged man, although the deep look of concern on his face made him seem well into old age. "It wasn't flooded when we came through earlier!"

"River's still rising," said the driver. "It's stopped raining... but the river's still rising. See, look back there." He pointed to the bridge behind them. The water should have been ten feet below the bridge, but it was only two feet away from flooding the structure entirely.

"Damn!"

"What is it?" said Lady Sedgeworth. She was ten years younger than her husband, but was still much too old to be wearing the tight, low-cut dress that revealed a bit too much of her sagging features.

"Flood," said Anton. "Driver! Take us back across the bridge and try the southern path. It's higher."

"But that's the LONG way around!" Lady Sedgeworth whined.

"Nothin' we can do about it now, ma'am," the driver said apologetically. He whipped the horses into motion and circled around to face the direction they'd just come. Once again the carriage rattled and shook as it traversed the bridge.

Anton and Lady Sedgeworth sat across from Anton's friend and business partner, Devonian Wilks, and Lady Wilks. Both were younger than the Sedgeworths. Younger, more well-dressed, but not quite as rich. They too, were worried. Fear seemed to have added twenty years to the face of everyone in the carriage.

"Dear gods," said Lady Sedgeworth. "What was that about?"

"Flood," Anton grumbled.

"I didn't mean that; I meant the ball. What WAS that?"

"I'd rather not talk about it," said Lady Wilks. "Whatever it was... it's back there."

"Hopefully," Anton added.

"Men like Brinks attract trouble-" said Lord Wilks.

"They attract MONEY, too," Anton replied. "So before you start bad-mouthing him, you'd better remember where our prosperity comes from."

"It isn't from him," said Wilks. "Not ALL of it."

"Only the vast majority."

"But that doesn't give him the right to endanger our lives!"

"You saying he had something to do with-"

"It was HIS ball! HIS mansion! And don't think I don't know who that pale man was... that was December! THE December!"

"How very astute of you.... especially considering that they announced his name when he arrived."

"Brinks was trying to kill him! That man on the balcony, that was an assassin. It was an assassination attempt! Brinks was trying to kill December... do you KNOW the kind of trouble that could bring to this town!?"

"I am well aware of it," said Anton.

"I think we should be packing our bags now!" Wilks blurted. He was rapidly becoming hysterical.

"In a town like this... with men like Brinks... it's always best to KEEP a bag packed," replied Anton.

"I don't want to talk about his any more," said Lady Wilks. She'd been one of the most well-dressed women at the ball... until all the excitement started and she spilt a full glass of wine down the front of her white gown. She'd been in a sour mood ever since.

"Of course, my dear," said Lord Wilks.

The carriage continued through the streets in strained silence... accompanied only by the trotting of the horses and the dull rumbling of the wheels. They went south to a higher bridge, then crossed over to the far side of the river. The streets where higher here... untouched by the inexplicably rising waters of the river Hames.

Nevertheless, not five minutes after they'd crossed the bridge, the carriage halted. There was a soft 'thump' from the driver's seat... then the sound of something hitting the ground.

"What the bloody blue HELL!?!" Anton cursed. He stuck his head out of the carriage window. "Driver! DRIVER!"

There was no answer.

"Driver?"

"Anton?" Lady Sedgeworth grabbed her husband's arm and held it tight... nearly cutting off the circulation.

"He's gone," said Anton. "Looks like the driver ran off."

"What!?" said Lord Wilks. "That's preposterous!"

"I'm going to see what's going on..." Anton Sedgeworth snatched his arm out of his wife's grasp. He reached underneath his seat and pulled out a loaded crossbow.

"Anton, don't-"

"Hush, woman! You want to sit here in this damned carriage all night!? I'll just be outside looking for the driver-"

"I'll join you." Lord Wilks followed Anton's lead... he reached underneath his seat and found a rapier strapped to the wooden crossbeam. The carriage had two doors, one on either side. Anton opened the right door, and Wilks moved toward the left.

"Be careful!" said Lady Wilks.

Lord Wilks grunted a reply and stepped outside. Both doors closed, sealing the women in the relative safety of the carriage.

"Anton?" Lord Wilks called. He could hear Anton's footsteps on the other side of the carriage, but he couldn't see his friend. The street was deserted, although that wasn't all that unusual for this part of the city. It was late, and this was a shopping district. The stores were closed; their storekeepers gone home for the night. Everything was eerily quiet. The driver's compartment of the carriage was vacant; there was no sign of the man that once sat there. "Anton?"

"Right here, Wilks," Anton Sedgeworth called from the right side of the carriage.

"Just don't shoot me with that bow by mistake."

Anton didn't reply.

Wilks looked to the left and right... up and down the street. Nothing. He held his rapier at ready, however.

"Anton, I'm going round back... you go to the front..." Wilks started walking toward the rear of the carriage. He'd taken several steps before he realized that Anton hadn't said anything. "Anton?"

Wilks froze. He backed up... then started walking around toward the front of the carriage...

Meanwhile, Lady Wilks had begun shivering with fear. Lady Sedgeworth tried to calm her down, but she wasn't too far off from being in the same state.

"...something's not right..." Lady Wilks murmured. "...I'm scared..."

"Shhh.... It'll be okay. Probably the driver playing a trick on us."

"But what if it's... what if it's that MAN....from the ball!"

"Nonsense," said Lady Sedgeworth.

There was a noise from outside. It wasn't a cry our a shout... more like a whimper, followed by a loud THUMP of something hitting the side of the carriage. Both women screamed loud and long. Lady Wilks reached for the left door-

"Devonian!" she called.

"Wait, don't go outside!"

Too late. The door flew open and Lady Wilks nearly fell out of the carriage. She stumbled a few steps, then righted herself. She turned around to look at Lady Sedgeworth, who was staring at her from the carriage.

"There's no one out here," said Lady Wilks. "Anton? Devonian? Driver? Hello?"

She peered round to the rear of he carriage. There was no one there.

"Don't wander off!" Lady Sedgeworth called.

Lady Wilks stepped behind the carriage and continued on to the other side. There was no sign of their husbands or the driver.

"Hellloooooo!!!!" she called. "This isn't FUNNY, Devonian!"

She let her own voice echo down the empty streets.

"Lady Sedgeworth, they aren't here! Lady Sedgeworth?"

Lady Wilks opened the carriage's right door-

"AAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII-!"

They were all there. Anton. Devonian Wilks. Lady Sedgeworth. Even the driver.... all there, and all dead. They're necks were broken, and their limbs fell at odd angles as they lay motionless on the carriage floor. Lord Wilk's rapier protruded from his own heart like an arrow. Their dead, glassy eyes peered out at Lady Wilks... forcing her backward with the sheer intensity of their lifeless gaze.

Still screaming, Lady Wilks didn't realize she'd backed into something until it was too late. She spun around and look up at the dark, hooded figure. She couldn't see the face, but she knew who it was.

"You-" she started.

With the reflexes of a striking snake, Faction grabbed Lady Wilk's head and twisted it around a full 360 degrees. Her limp body fell back, but it never hit the ground. Faction caught her and tossed her into the carriage... she landed on top of her husband. The assassin gently closed the carriage door and walked away. At a distance of a few yards, he stopped and turned around... his glowing staff was already in his hands. He unleashed a stream of orange fire upon the carriage, setting it ablaze. It burned like a miniature sun. The startled horses took off running, carrying he blazing inferno with them down the streets of New Venyce...

---

Dravian knew that something was wrong even before Cellus burst into his chamber. He felt it in the air... on his skin... in his mind. Dravian had cast far too much magic in this town to be caught unaware. He was the headmaster of New Venyce's one and only school of magic; he knew more about the Art than anyone within a month's travel. And he knew that something was wrong. Something was terribly, terribly wrong.

Dravian was already dressed when Cellus entered without knocking.

"DRAVIAN!" the younger mage howled. As a master of magic, Cellus was not prone to undo excitement. This must be very serious indeed.

"What is it?" Dravian asked as he stepped passed Cellus and out into the hall. Cellus followed nervously behind him. "What's happening?"

"We're under attack! Someone's attempting to breech the containment spell!"

"SomeONE? It would take an entire team of mages to even put up a viable attempt-"

"I don't know who or what, but whatever it is is INCREDIBLE!"

"Are we holding?" said Dravian.

"I don't know! I don't KNOW!"

"What do you MEAN you don't know?"

"Everything's chaotic! I can't tell if the containment field is holding or not!"

"The apprentices-"

"I've gathered every mage and apprentice in the building... they're in the assembly room... it was all we could do to divert the attack from the Brinks mansion to here!"

"Ye gods!" Dravian exclaimed. He doubled his pace until he reached the winding stone staircase leading up. He took the steps two at a time and emerged onto a long hallway with a huge set of double doors at the far end.

Suddenly the building started to shake. It started as a barely-noticable vibration, but it quickly rose to a quake strong enough to knock Cellus off of his feet. Cracks began to form down the thick stone walls... the hallway before them began undulating like an angry serpent.

"It's not HOLDING!" Cellus cried.

Dravian cast a spell that lifted both Cellus and himself into the air. The flew down the hall... where a second quick spell opened the double doors an instant before they reached them.

Fifteen men... mages and apprentices... stood in a circle in the room beyond. The vibrations were less intense here, but only barely. Bershold, another master mage, was leading the others in a frantic series of spellcasting. Crackling streams of arcane power leapt from their fingertips and converged on a glowing sphere of light in the center of the room. The sphere pulsed and hummed ominously... and every few seconds it would recoil as if struck by a giant fist. Each time that happened, a corona of fiery energy would fly off from the sphere and strike walls... causing the entire building to shake. The containment spell that sealed the city from magical intrusion was under assault from... something. Dravian, Cellus and Bershold had activated the spell at the behest of their benefactor, Gabrial Brinks, to prevent December from summoning assistance from his magic-users in Montfort. But now something was tearing it inside-out. The spell itself resided in a large crystal in the Brink's manse, but Bershold and the others had successfully managed to divert the attack to the School of Magic, where it could be studied and defeated. Both study and defeat were proving more difficult than they'd anticipated. The mages sent more energy into the globe... they were already far past the level of power that they could safely control. Their robes dripped sweat... and some bled from their noses and ears. But whatever the mages were doing... wasn't working. The globe convulsed and deformed more and more often.

"WHAT'S HAPPENING!" Dravian shouted. He had to yell to make himself heard over the rumbling and cracking of the walls.

"REINFORCING THE SPELL GRADIANTS!" Bershold replied. "POURING EVERY OUNCE OF POWER WE HAVE INTO THIS SPELL... BUT IT'S NOT WORKING!"

"YOU FOOLS-" Dravian began.

Suddenly the humming and crackling of the magic faded away... drowned out by a NEW sound. Something that sent chills down nearly everyone in the room:

"...rrrrrRRRRRRRRAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAA!!!!!"

The glowing sphere burst like a balloon. Flaming streams of power flew in all directions-

"GET DOWN!"

"AIEEEEE-" A whip-like arc of flame strafed across the line of mages. The first two mages became missiles of flaming meat... their burning bodies struck the wall and exploded, spattering their comrades with boiling blood and sizzling flesh. Other mages either ducked or raised protective fields around themselves-

"THE SPELL!" Cellus shouted. He pointed. Where the glowing sphere had once been, there was now a large, looming shadow. In fact, every shadow in the room seemed to be converging on the spot... forming into something larger-

"The spell's been breached!" Bershold screamed "SOMETHING'S COMING THROUGH!" He and the remaining mages began pouring energy into the area around the shadow... trying to repair the hole in the containment field before whatever it was fully materialized.

"NO!" Dravian ordered. "FORGET the primary spell... the attack was FEEDING off of your own power! Cast a NEW containment spell around the breech! And then ANOTHER one around the new one! And ANOTHER! Keep layering the spells until you CAN'T CAST ANOTHER!"

"TOO LATE!" said a young apprentice. He pointed fearfully at the shape in the room. The shadows had gathered, and now they were pulling away like a curtain, revealing what lay behind them.

"CAST THE SPELLS! WE'LL HANDLE THIS!" said Dravian.

The mages got to work as the 'thing' came into view. It was a horrid thing... something that could not and should not have existed in the physical world. A giant tooth-filled mouth floating above the ground, with long, muscular tentacles splaying out in all directions. And at the end of each tentacle as another mouth...

An apprentice saw the thing and cried out in terror.

"KEEP CASTING!" Bershold ordered. The boy could not obey. He was transfixed by the grotesque site... he couldn't move even when one of the tentacles shot towards him. The mouth-tentacle cracked his chest open as if his ribs were made of eggshell. Once inside his chest, the mouth bit his heart in half and swallowed both pieces in one gulp. Then it moved on to the other organs-

"DIEEE!!!!" Cellus shouted. He cast a fireball right into the center of the main mouth. The creature swallowed the flaming sphere whole, then its lips seemed to curl up into a smile. Dravian followed Cellus's blast with a stream of lightning bolts that knocked the creature back into the wall. Each bolt seared a deep grove into the thing's flesh. The creature floated towards them... it had to float because it had no legs. Each of the dozens of tentacles converged on Dravian and Cellus.

Cellus let fly with a volley of magic missiles, each one aimed at a hungry tentacle. The missiles drove the tentacles back, giving Dravian enough time to complete a complex casting-

"Petrificus Transformae!" the elder mage shouted. Half of the creature's mouth turned to stone. That side of the thing drooped and hit the floor... but then it became flesh again and the creature continued toward them.

"Didn't work!" said Cellus.

"Try thermal stress!" Dravian responded. Both mages cast a spell... Cellus threw fire at one side of the thing, while Dravian bathed the other in a freezing fog. Then they switched sides. The sudden change in temperatures caused the creature to go into wild convulsions for several seconds.... tentacles slammed themselves into the walls as the thing writhed in pain.

But there was no lasting physical damage.

"Lightning seemed to work-" said Cellus. Again, both mages cast as one... both poured lightning onto the beast and forced it back The tentacles whipped around in the air, but despite its pain, the creature showed no signs of dying.

"Not enough damage!" said Dravian. "Keep up the lightning while I try a planar sphere!"

Cellus pushed his power to the limit... keeping the creature writhing in pain while Dravian went through almost 30 seconds of complex incantations. Finally he gestured at the creature. A brightly glowing field formed around the thing Dravian's spell attempted to shift its body to another plane of existence. The creature faded... became less distinct... then transparent... then it snapped back into focus.

"IMMUNE!" Dravian shouted. "DAMN!"

"COMPRESSION GEM!" cried Cellus.

Dravian began casting again. Unfortunately, the creature had grown immune to Cellus' lightning-bolts. It regained control of its flailing tentacles. Both mages had to duck repeatedly to keep from being impaled and eaten from the inside out.

"It's got too much room to move!" said Dravian. "The hallway!"

"WE'VE ALMOST GOT IT!" said Bershold. "NEW FIELDS ARE HOLDING...ALMOST...."

"KEEP GOING!"

Dravian and Cellus backed out into the hall, and the creature followed them. Cellus used lightning-bolts and magic missiles to cover Dravian as the thing chased them down the hallway. Finally, Dravian was ready-

"MICROPETRIFICUS EXT REDUXAE!" he shouted.

Planes of energy formed around the creature, containing it inside a gem-like structure that began to shrink... taking the creature along with it. In the span of a few seconds, the thing was trapped inside a diamond-shaped crystal small enough to fit in Dravian's hand. He picked up the crystal and looked at it. Then he stuffed it into his pocket for future study.

Beside him, Cellus had dropped to his knees. He was doubled over, breathing heavily from his exertions. Dravian helped him up, and together they returned to the assembly room. A new globe of energy was taking shape in the center of the room, but like the last one, it too was under assault.

"Almost got it!" Bershold yelled. "One more spell and it'll be completely sealed!"

As if summoned by Bershold's words, another shape appeared within the globe of light. It was a portal...

"Something else is coming!" cried Cellus.

It was giant human head, with leathery skin draw tight around its enormous skull. Its teeth had all been sharpened into fangs. The thing sat on the end of a serpent's body and, like a snake on the attack, it shot out of the portal. Cellus leapt protectively in front of Dravian-

"Look out, Dravi-"

KRUNCH!

The inhuman mouth chomped down on Cellus and bit him in half. Blood and entrails sprayed everywhere, coating the enormous face like paint. It spat the top half of Cellus out onto the floor and went for Dravian, but the mage had already erected a protective field around himself.

"GOT IT!" said Bershold. The final containment spell slid into place. The portal began to close, and the enormous head retreated.

"Whoever you are..." Dravian howled. "You're going to have to try harder than THAT!"

"....I will..." N'Doki replied. "...I will..." The head sank back into the portal an instant before the containment field forced it closed.

Everything was dreadfully silent for a long time.

"...Cellus..." said Bershold.

"He as a good man," Dravian replied. "We won't be able to withstand another assault like that... Gods, what have we gotten ourselves into..."

---

"You wanted to see me?" said Zade. She entered December's suite and paused just inside the doorway. Zade had already changed out of her evening gown and slipped into something more comfortable... form fitting leather armor. Theesa wore her night clothes, but December was still dressed in his formal attire. Men's formal clothing tended not to be as confining and uncomfortable as women's, so there was really no hurry to change.

"Yes," said December. He sat in one of the suite's padded chairs and seemed to be... doing absolutely nothing. Theesa was in another room, brushing her hair. "I want you to return to the Brinks mansion."

"You want him dead? I thought the plan was-"

"The plan has not changed. Brinks' paranoia will cause him to destroy his own organization without our help, however, it is not wise to leave him in the possession of the Heart of Verraque during that time. Return to the mansion and retrieve it. While you are there, find out as much as you can about Thorne... the sheriff's information was disappointingly sparse concerning him."

"The man in the golden armor," said Zade. "Which may or may not be of divine construction. How much you wanna know?"

"Everything," said December. "About the armor and the man that wears it. I have my own theory concerning Thorne, and I wish to have it confirmed before we proceed any further."

"I got some theories of my own..." said Zade. "I need to make a stop before I hit the mansion."

December didn't seem to care.

"I guess that means I should go now, eh?"

"Yes. You are dismissed."

"I'm gone."

Zade left the room and went downstairs where Sir Oliver, the inn's owner, was just emerging from his downstairs apartment.

"Enjoy the ball?" he said... an honest and friendly inquiry that Zade completely ignored. She walked past him as if he weren't even there. "Hmph..."

---

The Brinks' mansion was under guard, but Zade had expected that. She circled the entire property twice, then waited to watch the pattern of their movements. She spotted an opening, and she took it. She scaled the stone wall, dropped down on the other side, and sprinted silently for the bushes. She crouched and waited for the guard to walk past.

The guard paused right in front of her. He looked around, then unfastened his pants and relieved himself into the bush where Zade was hiding.

Oh, HELL no... thought Zade as she reached for her blades. With two swift motions, she relieved the guard of his manhood AND his life. In that order.

"See there," she whispered to his corpse, "I was gonna let you live, but noooo..."

Zade smashed the guard's crossbow and hid the body in the bushes. She tore off the man's shirt to dry herself with and continued silently on her way.

Zade approached the front of the property. She kept to the bushes and shrubs, hiding herself from anyone who may have been watching from the towers at the corners of the property... IF there was even anyone up there. Her black hair and armor blended with the night, making her nearly invisible. Her polished metal bracers would have been a problem, but she'd already coated them with dirt and soot. No more gleaming metal to give her away.

She watched the front of the mansion for a few minutes. It was heavily guarded... no way she could get in without killing every guard between her and the door.

...Not that that wasn't an option...

She crept around back to see if there wasn't another way in. She was halfway there when the pounding started. A deep, heavy booming... and the clanging of metal against rock. At first Zade thought it was an alarm, but there was no shouting and no guards came running past. In fact, all the guards she saw seemed to be ignoring it.

"Hmmm..."

The sound was coming from the grounds in the far right of the property... a distant corner, well away from the mansion. Zade decided to check it out.

The cover from the bushes only took her so far before she had to creep out into the open. But she noticed that there were no guards at this part of the estate. She didn't need cover, because there was no one here to see her.

Except perhaps for whoever or whatever was making the noise.

There was a huge rock garden directly ahead of her. Enormous boulders... imported at great cost from rock quarries around the world... loomed like the half-buried skulls of giants. Some of the stones had been carved into figures: animals, people, creatures of myth and legend. Only a few were still in one piece. Most had been smashed to pebbles.

A twisting path led deeper into the garden. Pole-mounted torches illuminated the path, so Zade stayed away from it. She climbed up onto the rocks and made her way through the shadows toward the source of the noise. As she got closer, the rocks began to shake with the force of whatever was smashing into them. By the time she arrived at the center of the garden, she had to hold on with nearly all her strength not to keep from being thrown off. She pulled herself up to the top of one rock and peered down at the small clearing below.

She wasn't all that surprised to see Thorne.

Brinks' metal-clad bodyguard was alone, and he seemed to be having some kind of psychotic episode. Repeatedly, he smashed his huge fists into whatever was around him... in this case, the rocks.

Every rock in the clearing had huge chips and cracks. Fragments littered the clearing... where there had once been grass, there was now a thick layer of gravel.

KRA-BOOM!

Thorne's fist shattered a section or rock. He'd simply walked over to it and punched it seemingly for no reason.

KRA-BOOM!
KRACK!

A second punch cracked the rock in two, shaking the entire garden in the process.

KRA-BOOM!

Sparks flew from Throne's knuckles as they demolished another rock. Thorne leaned back laughed heartily before punching another boulder into fragments.

Dust, Zade thought. He's gotta burn off the rage from the Dust that Brinks feeds him...

BOOOM!!

Thorne drove his fist into a rock adjacent to the one on which Zade had perched. The resulting shockwave sent cracks zigzagging through the boulder... and it sent Zade tumbling to the ground.

"Whoooaa!" Zade twisted in the air and landed on her feet... not six yards away from Thorne. He quickly turned towards her. "Uh-ohh..."

---

December's deep thoughts were interrupted by the sudden shouting in the hallway.

"You can't just burst in there!" said Sir Oliver.

"Nonsense," replied Dr. Azarius Park. "I know they're awake!"

"But you can't-!"

There was a loud knock at the door.

"I INSIST that you leave NOW!" Sir Oliver shouted.

December got up and opened the door.

"May I help you gentlemen?" he said.

"My apologies," said Sir Oliver. "Dr. Park just BARGED in and I couldn't stop him-"

"This is IMPORTANT, dammit!" said Dr. Park. The old man had a large cylindrical object tucked under one arm. He looked up at December. "Do you mind if I use your window?"

"My window?" said December.

"Dr. Park keeps babbling on about-"

"SHUT UP!" the doctor snapped. "I'm SICK AND TIRED of you! If you're not interested in saving your own SKIN, then I suggest you just SHUT UP and GO AWAY!"

"Well, I NEVER-"

"The doctor is welcome here," said December. He stepped aside and let the doctor enter. Sir Oliver, looking defeated and very unhappy, turned around and went back downstairs.

"Hmph," said Dr. Park. He headed straight for the main window of December's suite. He opened the curtains, then opened the window itself. He looked out at the night sky and scratched his chin.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit, Dr. Park?" said December as he closed and locked the door.

"Hmmm.... lemme get my bearings.. just a minute..."

"What's all this noise?" said Theesa. She entered from the bedroom wearing a white fur robe that covered her ankles up to the top of her neck. She looked very comfortable, despite the rather low temperature in the room.

"Sorry for the disturbance, good lady," said Dr. Park. He had set his telescope up on its build-in tripod, and was positioning it so that it pointed through the window at something in the unseen distance. "But this is important. You may wish to start packing your belongings-"

"What?" said Theesa.

"Please explain yourself, doctor."

"Oh, I'll explain all right," said Azarius. He was peering through the eyepiece and making adjustments to several knobs. "Here we are... nope... no, almost..."

"We are waiting, Dr. Park..."

"Well... I was looking out my window when I spotted some peculiar cloud formations in the mountains. I took a look through my telescope, but my loft is at an odd angle and I couldn't get- AHA! There they are...."

"But how can you see ANYTHING in the dark like this?" said Theesa. She looked out of the window, but all she saw as darkness.

"Night-vision lens, dear woman," said Azarius. "Only the best. Care to take a look?"

December stood in front of the telescope and leaned down so that he could look through the eyepiece.

"Try not to freeze my instrument, if you don't mind," said Dr. Park. December ignored the comment and squinted at the image in the eyepiece.

"Hmmmm....."

"Hmmmm, Indeed!" said Dr. Park.

"What is it, December?"

"Rain. It appears to be raining rather heavily in the mountains."

"Rain!?" said Dr. Park. "THAT is not rain... THAT is a gods-damned DELUGE of mythic proportions! Pardon my language."

"Let me see..."

December stepped back, and Theesa took a turn at the telescope.

"Oh, my... it's like a waterfall from the sky!"

"That's exactly what it is," said Dr. Park. "And that's why you should be packing your bags. I've seen it from several angles now; that's all the proof I need. I'll be renting a carriage and leaving within the hour-"

"But what does this mean?" said Theesa.

"Mean!? Oh... well, I guess you wouldn't know." Dr. Park cleared his throat and continued. "The river Hames has its beginning in those mountain peaks. Two large natural basins collect the melting snow and release the water into a system of streams, which eventually merge to form the river. Now, there is water literally POURING out of the sky, directly into those basins. You saw it with your own eyes. The basins will either overflow, or collapse entirely and release their entire volume into the river. If ONE basin goes, a twenty-foot tall wall of water will flood over three-fourths of the city. But if they BOTH go-"

"A disaster of divine magnitude," said December.

"Damn right," said the doctor. "Soooo, I'm leaving. Pleasure knowing you... perhaps we'll meet in Montfort one day."

"We have to get out of here!" said Theesa.

"I believe that's what I've been saying," said Dr. Park. He began to pack up his telescope.

"But what about ZADE!" said Theesa. "She's OUT there!"

"Dr. Park, how long to we have before the flood occurs?"

"Hours. Days. I really have no idea... I'm just a historian, remember? I'd start making whatever arrangements I needed to get out of here... if your friend isn't back by the time you're ready to go, leave her behind."

"We can't DO that!"

"Your choice. I really DO hope I see you again," said the doctor. "It's been a pleasure speaking with some intelligent minds for a change."

"But what about the city!" said Theesa. "You aren't going to WARN them?"

"Warn?" said Azarius. "I've already warned the few people in this damned place that are worth saving... that being the two of you and the guy down at the cafe that makes those sandwiches that I like. Other than that..." the doctor shrugged. "Besides, you woudn't want a low-life like Brinks to survive the flood, would you?"

"But-"

"Times a-waisting! Gotta go, gotta go!" With his telescope tucked under his arm once more, Dr. Park headed for the door.

He never made it.

The heavy wooden door burst inward with a loud crash that threw flaming splinters into the room. Dr. Park backed away before the figure that entered:

Faction.

"At last, we meet," said Faction. His voice was un-muffled by the deep hood that hid his face. His black cloak hung low to the ground, turning him into a sinister image of death itself.

"Get behind me, Theesa," said December. He moved between the woman and the intruder. Faction walked calmly toward them both.

Dr. Park dropped his telescope and pulled a surprisingly long dagger from his belt.

"G-get back," said the doctor. "You leave these good people alone... I may be old, but I know how to USE this!"

"Dr. Park, don't-" Theesa cried.

Faction made a motion. It was too fast for Theesa to follow... all she saw was Faction reaching up the sleeve of his cloak. There was a bright light, and a blast of heat. Dr. Park yelped in pain as Faction's staff impaled him through the abdomen... searing right through his soft flesh as if the staff were a bladed weapon. Dr. Park's mouth opened...he tried to cry out, but a sudden burst of heat from the staff incinerated him.. turning the still-squirming doctor into a charred skeleton in the blink of an eye.

"NOOOOOO!!" Theesa screamed.

Faction yanked his staff out of Dr. Park's skeleton and continued toward December.

"Brinks wants you alive... but honor requires that I kill you. Let us see who's will shall be done... perhaps I should flip a coin."

Faction rotated his staff in the air as he approached.

December didn't wait for him to get much closer. He charged straight toward Faction while Theesa ran to one side. Faction jumped aside and swept his enchanted staff toward December's back-

WHACK!

Even the slightest glancing blow SHOULD have incinerated December, but the staff's glow fizzled and died the instant it touched him. December rushed past Faction with little more than a slight bruise on his back from Faction's attack. The staff's flickering glow returned. Theesa had run along the side of the room and rejoined December by the door.

"The hallway!" said December.

As they backed out of the room, Faction looked down and saw the sheet of parchment that December had dropped as he ran past.

The rune on the page was glowing.

---

Perhaps Thorne was going to say something, or perhaps he was just going to grunt and growl like the brute he was. Whichever it was, the gentle *tink* of Zade's throwing stars bouncing off of his helmet turned it into another booming laugh.

"HAHAHAA!" Thorne pointed at her and continued laughing.

"Keep laughing, funny-man." Zade sent another star zipping straight toward the eye-slit in Thorne's helmet.

bzzt-tink!

There was a spark, and the missile bounced off of whatever magic field operated within the golden armor. Zade hadn't actually expected it to work, but it was worth a try. She ran her fingers across the design on her right bracer. Her crossbow popped into existence and fell into her hand. She swung it around and fired-

CHOOM!

KLANGGG!

The titanium bolt bounced harmlessly off of Thorne's chest.

"Heh, heh, heh," Thorne chuckled. "That almost tickled. Almost." Zade reloaded quickly and fired again-

CHOOM!
KLANGGG!

A head-shot. Thorne's helmet snapped back from the impact... but no harm was done.

"HA! Is that the best you can do?"

"Haven't even gotten started yet....

"Don't bother... You can't hurt me! I'm invulnerable!"

"Oh, well," said Zade. She dropped her crossbow and drew two daggers. "Let's just see HOW invulnerable- YAAAHHH!!"

She charged. Thorne did likewise, and the two bodyguards roared toward each other like runaway carriages...

---

Faction turned and threw himself out of the window-

KRA-BOOM!!!

A tongue of flame and debris followed him out into the night.

The explosion knocked Theesa off of her feet, but December grabbed her before she fell. He pulled her behind him as he marched quickly down the stairs. The charred remains of Sir Oliver waited for them at the bottom.

"Oh, no!" said Theesa.

"It is only death," said December as he pulled her out into the lobby. "You will become accustomed to it."

They rushed out of the main door and out into the night. They stopped. December squinted out at the street, then looked left and right... his eyes were glowing...

"What?" said Theesa.

"He survived," December replied.

Faction stepped out of the shadow in which he'd been hiding. He walked calmly toward the couple.

"Run," said December. He turned to face Faction. "Run, Theesa."

"No, I won't leave you!"

"I shall be right behind you."

"No, he won't," said Faction. "But I will."

"Run NOW, WOMAN!"

Theesa ran... she ran right back INTO the inn...

"Sacrificing yourself to save the girl?" Faction taunted. He activated his staff, an the fiery glow lit up the street around him. "Certainly not the December I'VE heard of. Perhaps by killing you I will be doing the REAL December a favor..."

"You shall soon see how real I am."

December slipped his hand into his pocked and retrieved a small blue gem. He threw it at Faction... Faction swung his staff and struck the gem in mid air. The gem shattered, releasing the magic held within it. A howling wind rose from nowhere, and soon the most bitter arctic cold joined it as it wrapped around Faction like a cold lover's embrace. The temperature around the assassin dropped to something far, far below natural. Faction's flaming staff flickered and grew dim...

...Theesa ran up the stairs and was greeted by the fire pouring from the suite that she and December had shared. She she forced herself down the hall until she could get no closer to her suite... but that wasn't where she was going. Theesa felt along the wall until she found the door to Zade's room...

The wind and the cold faded as quickly as it had begun, leaving Faction standing motionless in the street. The water on the street had frozen into a layer of ice. Faction's staff had ceased its fiery glow.

Nothing happened for several seconds. Then Faction moved. He stepped lightly on the ice while the enchanted staff roared back to life with a vengeance.

"Surprised?" said Faction. He reached into his cloak and pulled out the crystal he'd stolen from Brinks. It was glowing, actively counteracting the deadly cold. He held it up by the chain, "I came prepared for your parlor tricks." Faction tucked the gem away. "I will kill you and your mercenary... then I will let Brinks have your woman before I kill them both. It is only fair that I let him have his pleasure before I meet the demands of honor."

"You will find that I am harder to kill than you imagine," said December.

"I have heard that many times," said Faction. He walked confidently toward December. "And it has never been true. Prepare now to accept whatever afterlife awaits you-"

"DECEMBER!" Theesa shouted from above. Something fell from an upstairs window. December and Faction both looked up to see what it was.

Faction burst into motion. He made a running start and then leapt toward December, twisting in the air and preparing to strike-

December snatched Zade's titanium staff out of the air, then quickly turned and-

CLANG!

Blocked Faction's powerful attack. Sparks sprayed outward in a brief shower as the titanium met the strange material of Faction's superheated staff. December's own power kept the metal from growing so much as a single degree warmer in his hands. They both backed away, Faction struck again, December blocked, parried, and counter-attacked.... swinging his staff toward Faction's skull. Faction ducked, but December quickly rotated his weapon and used the same momentum to sweep the staff in a low arc. Faction leapt over the attack while bringing his weapon down... December spun out of the way, then reversed his spin-

CLANG!

The weapons met again-

CLANG!
CLANG!

Sparks lit up the night as they fought. Faction lunged, December moved aside, then ducked under the impossibly-fast strike that followed. He counterattacked, but his staff touched nothing but air as Faction back flipped out of range.

The two men faced each other. Faction spun his staff slowly in a circle beside him as he nodded...

"Honor demands that you kill me," said December. "But the same honor requires you to accept a challenge from a worthy opponent." December twirled his weapon in a rapid arc, swinging it around his back, shoulder, and neck like a skilled fighter... then he stopped with the staff held ready for combat.

"Now," he said. "Consider yourself challenged."

[To Be Continued]