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its side, and everyone would be crushed under an incalculably massive
avalanche of buildings and walls.
Zossimus wanted Jennah, desperately. If he were to die, he would die with
his love.
"Jennah-"
A sudden shout-a roar of ecstatic triumph as loud as ten of Kozah's
cyclones-carried from the south to drown out his voice. The force of the shout hit
Shade like a maul and sent it lurching sideways, a bit of flotsam in the ocean of
the sky. Zossimus fell facedown in the grass and cursed through his fear. He
knew that voice-Karsus.
"Mystryl! I'll have your power!" boomed Karsus, his voice reverberating
through the heavens.
Shade steadied itself, though it continued to descend. Zossimus rose to all
fours.
"Karsus, you arrogant ass," he cursed.
Surely this was the end of the world, and Karsus had somehow brought it
about.
Again the sound of Karsus's voice thundered through the sky, but this time
Zossimus heard only sobs. Bottomless despair.
The crying fell silent, cut off as sharp as a razor. The world seemed to hold
its breath, silently waiting. Nothing more.
Shade continued to slip earthward.
Zossimus wanted to hold Jennah in his arms. He had maybe a hundred
heartbeats. He leaped to his feet and raced for the villa.
A small winged figure alit from an upper window, frantically flapping-
Pleeancis. Zossimus's familiar streaked for him as though shot from a bow, a blur
of green scales and membranous wings.
Unable to stop in time, the terrified little quasit crashed into Zossimus's
stomach and got tangled in his voluminous violet robes. Man and demon went
down in a heap.
Pleeancis's high-pitched voice squeaked oath after oath. "Oh, curse this
purple hell! I'll shred you thread-by-thread, wretched robe. Dare you to offend
Pleeancis the Mighty-yeep!"
Zossimus grabbed the tiny demon by his left haunch and yanked him free of
the robes. "Enough!"
The quasit fluttered in his hand. His red eyes shot the robes one last evil
glare before giving Zossimus his most winning, fanged smile.
"All right, Boss. Just having a moment there. Easy on the leg, eh?"
Zossimus released Pleeancis and climbed to his feet. The quasit hovered
before his face, a scaly, fanged hummingbird demanding attention.
"Boss-"
"Not now, Pleeancis."
He waved the quasit away and hurried for the villa. The city was still sinking.
He could feel it in the pit of his stomach. If only he and Jennah had Pleeancis's
wings.
Unperturbed, Pleeancis buzzed along beside him while he ran, the demon's
fanged mouth moving as quickly as his wings.
"What's happened, Boss? Huh? I can't even teleport. There's something
wrong with the ring. Watch this!"
In mid-air, wings still beating, Pleeancis squatted and made as though to ...
do something. He squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his tiny fists with the
effort.
"Unh. Unh."
Zossimus would have laughed but for the end of the world. Magic had
ceased to function, and Pleeancis was concerned only that his favorite toy was
not working.
"See, Boss? Nothing. Nothing at all. Couldn't teleport if I wanted to. I back!"
Zossimus stopped, grabbed his familiar out of air, and looked at him with
narrowed eyes. "Where's Jennah?"
"What? Who cares? I'm here, and my ring doesn't work!"
Zossimus knew the quasit didn't like Jennah, or at least didn't like that
Zossimus cared for her, but he had no time for Pleeancis's foolishness. "Where?"
The quasit must have seen his anger. His wings sagged. He ran a forked
tongue over his fangs and said, "She was in the sitting room."
Zossimus released the quasit and sprinted for the villa. Pleeancis flitted
about his head.
"But, Boss, you don't need her. Didn't you hear me? I can't teleport. There's
something wrong with my ring." "I said not now, Pleeancis!" "But, Boss-"
As he ran, Zossimus lashed out and smacked the tiny demon across the
midsection. Pleeancis, off kilter, let fly with a stream of high-pitched epithets,
spiraled out of control, and finally crashed to the lawn.
Zossimus ran on. From behind, he heard Pleeancis squeak indignantly.
"From now on, it's Pleeancis the Mighty to you, Boss!"
Despite himself, Zossimus cracked a grin. Not even this Karsus-made
catastrophe could quiet his familiar. They should all be so blissfully ignorant.
Before he reached the villa, Jennah burst from the doors. Her long red hair
flew wildly behind her her skin had gone white. Zossimus had never seen such a
lost look in her green eyes. She too was a mage. She too had sensed the
destruction of the Weave, but unlike Zossimus, Jennah had steadfastly refused
to tap the Shadow Weave. She had no shadow magic in which to find at least
some succor. "Zoss! The Weave!"
He raced to her and took her in his arms. "I know." She pushed him to arms
length, looked him in the face, and said, "And the city ... ?"
He shook his head in the negative. She blinked while that registered.
"Are we doomed then? What's happened?" Zossimus didn't want to answer
her first question and couldn't answer the second. Clearly, Karsus had done
something....
Pleeancis flitted over and squirmed between them. "What in the name of
Asmodeus's arse is going on around here?" He glared at Jennah. "Why're you so
upset? I'm the one who can't teleport." He shoved his ring finger before her face.
Zossimus did not have the energy to engage in further nonsense with his
familiar. He gently plucked him from the air and placed him on his favorite perch-
Zossimus's right shoulder. Jennah seemed hardly to see the quasit. Her gaze
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