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“They’re coming back!” Lei cried.

There was none of the slow build-up that had characterized the departure. A second later, the chamber was flooded with light. Daine could feel the energy flowing through him, pressing against his heart and lungs.

In an instant it was over. The thirteenth sphere had returned. Its surface was glowing a dull orange, and Daine could feel the heat from a hundred feet away. It slowly descended toward the floor, cooling as it dropped. A moment later the sphere opened, and the crystal ramp extended toward the floor. The interior of the sphere was still cloaked in shadows.

“RELEASE THE PRISONERS!” It was Holuar’s voice, yet it was different, stronger and far louder, with an underlying ripple like the crackling of flame. “APPROACH AND BEHOLD OUR GLORY!”

The soldier released Daine, and he raised a hand to massage his throat. The two drow sprinted toward the sphere.

“KNEEL!” Holuar roared from the darkness. “KNEEL AND GIVE HOMAGE, FOR THE MOMENT OF OUR DESTINY HAS COME!”

The firebinders knelt, one to each side of the ramp. Daine’s breath caught in his throat as the shapes emerged from the darkness.

Small shapes. Moving swiftly. Three-pronged wheels of dark wood.

Two boomerangs snapped out of the sphere, each one catching a firebinder warrior in the neck. Even as the soldiers struggled to rise, Shen’kar and Xu’sasar dove out of the darkness. Numbed by poison, the firebinders had barely raised their weapons before the oathbreakers were upon them. Xu’sasar’s twin blades flashed and Shen’kar’s spiked club rose and fell, and the battle was over in seconds.

Within moments, Shen’kar was at Daine’s side, untying his hands.

“What happened?” Daine said.

“Just as you planned,” the dark elf replied. He had released the magical glamour that he’d used to mimic the voice of the high priest. “The shadows we wove hid us from the foe, and the walls of this vessel shielded us from the flame. We followed the instructions of the lady—” he inclined his head toward Lei—“to return with this craft as soon as the firebinders departed. We left them standing upon an island of black stone in a lake of fire. Perhaps they will find the power that they seek, but they shall never return with it.”

“And Gerrion?” Daine said.

“You struck well. The priest healed the wound but did not look beyond the flesh to see the poison that coursed through the veins of your victim. As I promised you, the venom is as slow and patient as Xan’tora herself. By now, your enemy lies dead on the burning shore.”

Daine sighed. He’d never expected the firebinders to sacrifice Gerrion, but he had no intention of allowing the gray man to escape after what he’d put Lei through. My precious honor, he thought, remembering a time when that might have mattered.

“Now we look to your bargain,” Xu’sasar sang. “Holuar is left in this sea of endless flame, but the monolith is now open, and others could follow. Let this place be destroyed?”

“Lei?” Daine said. He pulled his weapons out from under the dead giant, and went to help Lakashtai.

“I don’t know. The power contained in these spheres—even if I can find a way to destroy them, the energy released could devastate the area for miles around—or worse.”

“You will find a way,” Shen’kar said.

The dark elf was still holding his poisoned rod, and his scorpion was perched on his left wrist. His words were fluid and beautiful, but it was clear to Daine that this was a statement, not a request.

“There may be weapons elsewhere in the monolith that could be of use,” Lakashtai said. “Have you learned how to dispel the wards that are blocking the use of mental powers?”

“In fact, I think I have,” Lei said. She’d wandered over to another panel halfway around the vast chamber. “These inscriptions on the walls defend against all sorts of supernatural effects. I think that these crystals empower these enchantments, so if I remove this one …”

A long line of glowing words faded into darkness. The temperature began to drop, and Daine’s breath