"Jiron!" he screams and then throws the orb. Dodging to the side, he closes his eyes as he sends a burst of magic causing the orb to explode in a blinding flash.

The scaly head strikes the wall where he had been but a second before. James is struck by the side of the monster's head and gets knocked from the wall. "Jiron!" he yells again as he plummets toward the water below.

"James!" he hears Jiron shout from above. "What's happening?"

He reaches out and grabs hold of the neck of the monster to slow his fall. Even with that he hits the water hard, his breath knocked out of him. Kicking his feet, he moves out of the way just as the head hits the water.

The impact of the head causes him to be propelled by the surge of water toward the side of the underground lake. Kicking and swimming furiously, he makes the edge and pulls himself up onto the ground. Turning onto his back, he sees the creature's head silhouetted by the light coming through the window from above, rearing up for another strike. Rolling to the right, he barely avoids being caught by the razor sharp teeth.

Getting to his feet, he quickly creates another orb and finds that the sh.o.r.e of the small lake extends further around the water. Running, he flees the monstrous creature and lets out with magic...

Crumph! Crumph!

...and the ground explodes upward in front of the creature.

Rearing backward and letting out with another bone rattling roar, the creature halts for a brief moment allowing James to flee further along the sh.o.r.e.

"Jiron!" he cries out as he races along the water's edge. The ground trembles as the creature leaves the water to pursue him. A ma.s.sive body with four strong legs and a long tail trailing behind, it looks just like a dinosaur.

Crumph!

Letting out with another explosion, he slows the creature down. Looking ahead desperately for a way out, he finds the water continues until it reaches the edge of a building. As the building becomes more illuminated by the orb's light he discovers the sh.o.r.eline, and thus his avenue of escape, ends at the side of the building.

Glancing back, he sees the creature again pressing forward to attack. Desperate for a way out, he edges closer to the water. Scanning the area once again for any sign of a way out, he notices the water lapping at the edge of the building and that the ground beneath the wall has been eroded away by the water.

With no time to determine if the eroded area extends very far, he runs and dives into the water. Swimming quickly, he reaches the building's edge. Just then, the water swells when the creature enters after him. Praying he's right, he takes a breath and dives again under the water.

Using his hand for a guide, he swims under the stone of the building. The stone above him extends for what seems like a long distance before his hand comes to the end of the stone. Kicking to the surface, his head breaks through to open air and he takes a ragged breath.

Heart pumping, he creates another orb and finds that he's in the corner of a large room. Over time, the water had eroded the ground out beneath the foundation causing the floor to fall away and drop below the surface. Reaching out a hand, he takes hold of the edge of the floor and quickly leaves the water.

Once out, he moves away from the edge and watches to see if the creature will follow. The opening isn't very large so he hopes it will decide against it. When all remains quiet for several minutes, he sighs with relief that the creature isn't going to follow.

Then it hits him. He's all alone. How will Jiron follow and catch up with him while that creature is out there? Even Jiron's prowess with the knives will be of little use against such a ma.s.sive creature.

He sits there a moment and takes stock of the situation. They're both still alive and will both be working to get out of here. He seriously doubts if Jiron will even think about trying to follow the way he went.

The room he's in is rather large, the ceiling rises up at least two stories. As all other rooms they've come across, this one is bare of any furniture or anything else that would indicate what its purpose once was. On the far side of the room lies a closed door, the only way to go other than the one he used to enter. He hopes Jiron can either find him or a way to the surface.

Crossing the room to the door he takes the handle and pulls. He has to exert a lot of pressure to get it to swing open into the room. Beyond lies a hallway leading further into the building.

James takes the orb in hand and pa.s.ses through the door, holding it high to better see what lies ahead. He moves down the hallway until he the light from the orb reveals a door ahead that's slightly ajar. As he nears the door he stops when it appears as if a faint, dark light is coming through from the other side. Canceling his...o...b..he sees that there is indeed a dark light coming through the doorway, and it's pulsating.

Stepping softly, he moves to the opening and peers around the door. "Unbelievable," he says under his breath. "I know this place." In one of the campaigns he designed for role playing, he devised a room almost identical to this one.

In the center of the room is a pulsating purple sphere of light that's twice the height of a man. Lightning crackles through it from one side to the other. Empty cages line the side of the room to the right and to the left stands an altar.

Sitting on top of the altar is a four armed, twisted, humanoid creature which in the campaign he designed was the representation of the cult's G.o.d. No one appears to be in the room. He stands there and watches for a minute to be sure the room is empty. A doorway lies on the wall between two of the empty cages with another across the room from where he stands in the hallway, both are closed. When no one makes an appearance, he opens the door further and walks in.

The pulsating sphere gives off a malevolent aura and if it's like the one he made, will lead to the plane where the G.o.d rules. Not wishing to test that particular theory, he gives the sphere a wide berth as he walks around it toward the altar where the G.o.d's statue sits.

Curiosity getting the better of him, he wonders if there's a hidden compartment in the belly of the statue same as the one in his campaign. If there is, you pull the top left and bottom right arms down at the same time to open it. He realizes it's sheer folly to tempt fate but he just has to know.

Stepping to the altar he takes hold of the two arms and pulls them both down at the same time. They both rotate down smoothly and the belly of the statue pops open. Within lies a ring. Now in his campaign, this had been a ring of three greater wishes and was guarded by a deadly trap. If everything has been the same so far, so must the trap.

Taking the statue in both hands, he rotates it upon the altar clockwise until it has come full circle. Once it rests in the same position again, he rotates the two arms back to their original position. Now, the trap should be nullified. If he's wrong, he's dead.

Hesitantly reaching out for the ring, he lays one finger on it and braces himself. Nothing happens. Breathing a sigh of relief, he takes out the ring and holds it up. Grinning in satisfaction, he contemplates whether he should use it. Of course there's no guarantee that it will do the same thing as the ring in his campaign. Also, he remembers how he used to try to come up with the worst possible results when people wished for things. If they misspoke, disastrous things would happen.

One time when Dave had found a ring, he wished for a million gold pieces. So of course he had a million gold pieces appear, only problem was that they were fused together. Too heavy to carry, he was forced to leave all that gold behind. Grinning at the memory, he grows sad that Dave is gone. Dave had always been a good friend.

Suddenly, his attention is drawn to the sphere as pulsation increases in intensity. Static electricity crackles and a bolt of lightning surges out of the altar, narrowly missing him as it flies past. Striking the pulsating sphere, a deafening boom resonates within the room and then a figure steps from the sphere.

Slipping the ring into his belt pouch, he moves to the edge of the altar and hunches down, hoping against hope that he won't be discovered. It's too far to make a dash un.o.bserved to one of the doors.

As the first figure leaves the sphere, another emerges behind him, then one more after that. The first figure is an exact replication of the idol on the altar except it only has two arms. It's wearing a robe and has the bearing of a priest. The second figure is a human male and has his arms tied behind his back. The third figure is another of the priests and is holding a tether tied to the human's throat.

They walk across the room to the cells and the first one produces a key. Unlocking one of the cell doors, he steps aside while the man's bonds are removed and is then pushed inside. When the cell door clangs shut, the man turns to grip the bars of the cell door and rests his forehead against them.

James' heart freezes within his chest when the man turns around. His mind has a hard time crediting what his eyes are showing him. There in the cell stands his friend Dave. Looking the worse for wear, he's still wearing the same clothes he last saw him in on that fateful trek from Ironhold.

The two priests turn to move toward the altar. Rage billows forth and James lashes out with a ma.s.sive magical attack. Realizing their danger too late, the priests fail to react quickly enough and feel the full force of the blow. Picked up off the ground, they're slammed into the wall. Falling to the ground, they hit the floor and remain motionless.

"James!" cries out Dave as the two priests. .h.i.t the wall.

Rushing over to his friend, James states, "I thought you were dead."

Dave stares into his eyes and asks, "Is that what Jiron told you?"

Shaking his head, he replies, "No. We interrogated one of the enemy soldiers and he told us what happened."

"Whatever he told you was a lie," he says.

"Obviously," states James. Moving over to the dead priests, he searches their robes until he locates the key to the cell. Returning to the cell, he unlocks the door.

"Is Jiron with you?" Dave asks.

"He was. We got separated," explains James. "Why?"

Dave remains silent for a moment before replying. "He's one of them," he finally says.

"What?" exclaims James. "That's impossible. He's saved my life on more than one occasion."

"I know it may have appeared that way," his friend says. "But when I left the cave with the Star, he came too. I saw him talking with the mage before returning to you and the others."

"No," argues James. Shaking his head, he says, "I can't believe that." Too many times has Jiron been there for him. For him to be an agent of the Empire is too mind-boggling for him to come to grips with.

"Believe it!" he says. "Look, I know you're a very trusting person, but think about it. How do you think the enemy always knew where you were? Remember those times you said that while Jiron was away you got captured?"

James nods his head, "But he rescued me."

"He's the one who told them where you were!" Dave hollers. "He only rescued you to gain your undying trust."

"Why would he do that?" James asks. Doubt begins to gnaw at him, as he begins to see the logic behind Dave's words.

"There's something you must do," he explains. "I didn't find out what but did hear them talking about it. He's there to see to it that you are in the right place at the right time."

"But..." he stammers as his foundation of what he thought to be true begins to erode away. Jiron the enemy? Though he fights the idea, things begin to fall into place. Then he says, "The Fire!"

"They already have that," he replies. "They had it shortly after you and the others hid it under the mountain. He told them where it was and how you protected it."

Anger begins to grow. Anger at being betrayed! Anger at being used! "I'll kill that traitor!" he shouts as rage gets the better of him. Never has he wanted to kill someone like he does now. If Jiron were here in front of him, he'd kill him on the spot.

From behind them, the sphere pulsates again as another bolt of lightning strikes it from the altar. Then just as before, a figure emerges. Removing a slug from his belt, he throws it with magic behind it and strikes the creature before it takes two steps.

Striking it in the chest, the slug blasts through and out the other side. The creature staggers backward into the pulsating sphere. As soon as the creature comes in contact with the sphere, it begins to pulsate erratically. The static charges within it become more frequent and the hair on the back of James' neck rises.

Taking Dave by the arm, he says, "We better get out of here." Dave nods and they make for the door between the cells as it's the closest. Static charges begin erupting from the sphere as they reach the door. Throwing it open, they hear the sphere begin to crackle loudly.

"Move!" screams James as he propels Dave through the door. He follows and slams the door shut. He no sooner puts his shoulder against the door before the sphere detonates with an immense explosion.

The concussion of the blast hits the door and knocks it off into the hallway. James is thrown backward several yards where he hits the floor hard. Getting to his feet, he turns back toward the doorway and sees electrical bolts crisscrossing the room. One enters through the doorway and ricochets down the hallway toward them.

Unable to move in time, he's struck full force in the chest by the bolt. A moment's searing pain and then he blacks out.

"James!" Jiron yells from the sh.o.r.e of the underground lake. Can't really call it a lake, it's not that big. He listens but no sound is forthcoming.

It took some doing but he made it down from the window. The rope is again coiled around his middle and he holds the orb high as he tries to figure out which way James went.

He sees the holes in the ground James had blasted and his footprints in the dirt. As for what he was running from, there's no indication of anything. Moving quickly, he follows the footprints in the dirt until he comes to where the sh.o.r.eline ends at a stone wall. The footprints seem to end here.

James is alive, of that he's sure. Had he been dead, the orb would have gone out. As long as the orb exists then James has to be alive. But where is he?

"James!" he hollers again. "Where are you?"

Examining the water's edge, he speculates James could have gone into the water. But why? Didn't make any sense. The surface of the water is placid, only a few residuals ripples from when he left the water after descending from the ledge under the window work their way across.

He didn't swim past me on my way here. So he had to go somewhere else. The only sh.o.r.e adjacent to the water is that which he is standing on now. Which leaves the stone wall he's standing next to. The only sh.o.r.e adjacent to the water is that which he is standing on now. Which leaves the stone wall he's standing next to.

Remembering the secret doors James found in the past, he begins working his fingers along the cracks and grooves. Pushing here, pressing there, he tries to find a hidden opening trigger. After a quarter hour he gives up, if James managed to find and use one he can't duplicate the feat.

He sits on the sh.o.r.e near the water as he tries to figure out what to do next. While he sits there, his mind drifts back to a time when he and Tinok had gone to recover a broach stolen from Tersa.

It was made of silver and the only thing of any value she owned. They had tracked the thief to one of the old buildings on the waterfront. The front door was barred from within and no other way was available to get in.

As it happened, one of their friends from the fight pits walked by while they were thinking of their next move. When he learned what they were up to he suggested going into the water and try to come up underneath the building. Said some buildings in the area have openings in their floor where they can access the water without leaving their homes. Taking them around to the side of the building, he showed them how it was built up to the water line.

Sure enough, when they dove under the water and swam beneath the building, they found an open section. They soon had the broach in hand and had thoroughly taught the hoodlum a lesson to within an inch of his life.

Returning to the present, Jiron looks at the way the water goes to the edge of the building and how the stone wall runs along the water a good fifteen feet. Seeing as how James' footprints end at the water's edge there, he takes the orb in hand and wades into the water to see if he could have gone under the wall.

Seven feet out, the water is now up to his waist. Two more steps and the ground beneath him comes to a drop. Thinking this might be the place, he dives under the water. Feeling with his free hand, he finds where the wall ends and begins working his way under the building. When his hand encounters the end of the stone above, he kicks up and breaks through the surface.

Holding the orb high, he sees where the stone is wet from where James had left the water. Tossing the orb onto the floor of the room, he pulls himself out of the water. Feeling mighty pleased with himself, he picks up the orb and follows James' wet footprints to the door leading from the room.

Peering through the open door, he finds a hallway extending directly away from the door. James' footprints are clearly visible indicating he had pa.s.sed this way. Moving through the doorway, he follows the footprints down the hallway.

The footprints continue until they come to an open door on the left. It looks like James paused here for some time before finally entering the room. Jiron looks around the door and finds another empty room with a door on the far side of the room and another on the right. The one on the right is open.

Just before he pa.s.ses through, he hears a groaning coming from further down the hallway. Glancing into the darkness, he holds up the light but it doesn't reveal anything. "James?" he hollers as he quickly moves down the hallway toward the source of the sound. Again the groaning comes from further down the hallway.

Quickening his speed, he runs toward the sound. A light begins to be seen ahead and he's soon to realize it's coming from behind a door at the end of the hallway. It's slightly ajar and the groaning is coming from whatever lies beyond.

Putting the orb inside his shirt, Jiron slowly moves to the opening and peers around the door. On the other side is a room right out of some torturer's dream. A man is using a hot iron on a form lying bound upon one of the tables within. Another table sits closer to the door and Jiron sees what looks to be a dead body lying upon it.

The man laughs as he again presses the hot glowing metal to the man's side. When the hot iron hits flesh, the man upon the table groans as smoke rises from his skin. Wracked with pain, the man on the table thrashes about. In his thrashing, the man turns his face toward the door where Jiron is standing.

Jiron gasps in startlement as he recognizes the form upon the table. Without thought, he throws open the door and rushes into the room. The man on the table cries out, "Jiron!" before pa.s.sing out.

Knives in hand, Jiron closes on the torturer and in two lightning quick pa.s.ses leaves him dead on the ground. "Tinok!" he cries as he turns to his lifelong friend. Seeing him lying there unconscious, he looks at what's left of his friend. One hand is missing three fingers, scars and burns cover most of his body. Emaciated and thin, he looks like he hasn't eaten anything for days.

Untying him from the table, he picks him up in his arms not caring that Tinok's blood soaks into the front of his shirt. Surprised at how thin he is, he carries him over to where a bucket of water sits on a small table. Propping him against the wall, he pats his face to wake him.

Tinok stirs groggily, not entirely aware of his surroundings. Jiron ladles out some of the water and puts it to his lips. The feel of the water trickling into his mouth brings him closer to wakefulness and he begins to swallow. After he drinks two full ladlefuls of water, Jiron puts it back in the bucket.

"Glad to see you," Tinok says.

Jiron can barely contain the emotions running through him. Alternating between rage and sorrow, he replies, "So am I. What happened to you?"

"After James made me leave, I got captured by the Empire..." he begins.

"Wait a minute," Jiron says, interrupting him. "Did you say that James made you leave?"

Nodding his head, Tinok says, "That's right. That night after Ca.s.sie died, he came to me and told me to leave."

"Why in G.o.d's name?" he asks incredulously. Such a thought had never even crossed his mind.

"He didn't give me a reason," says Tinok weakly. "Told me to get out or he would kill us both. Said he needed you but that I was a liability."

All this time, he had thought Tinok left because of his grief over the loss of his beloved Ca.s.sie. The rage he felt at the sight of Tinok lying upon the table intensifies tenfold.

Why?! James had always treated him so fairly and nice. All the while he sent away his best friend only to be tortured and maimed. He looks at the hand missing three fingers. Never again will it hold a knife.