grasp, Diliani watched it too descend toward the ground. Flying to the magician’s side, she found him unharmed, and hurried to Talli. Hut was already there, reassuring her that the attackers were gone and she was safe.

    “For the moment,” uttered the girl, quivering. “Others will come.”

    As their anxieties subsided and they slowed in flight, Speckarin examined the landscape below and had a sickening realization. Trying to escape the volodons, they had flown madly for he knew not how long, nor how far, nor in which direction. For all he knew they had gone in circles.

    Searching the terrain for recognizable landmarks, he found none. He had no notion where the campsite was nor where they thought they had separated from Gilin. To his great dis...

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