“Basically I wanted to see him on his way before he caught on to the flaw in your little tale.”
“What, the son-nephew slip? He wouldn’t have….”
“No, the other thing.”
“What other thing?”
I sighed.
“Look, he saw through your disguise because that pendant lets him see through spells, right?”
“Right, and I explained it away saying I was the victim of a demon’s curse. …”
“… that changed your appearance with a spell. But if he could see through spells, he should be able to see through that spell to see you as a normal man. Right?”
“Hmm. . . . Maybe we’d better be on our way now that we know where Isstvan is.”
But I was unwilling to let my little triumph go so easily.
“Tell me, Aahz. What would you do if we encountered a demon hunter as smart as me?”
“That’s easy.” He smiled, patting the crossbow. “I’d kill him. Think about it.”
I did.
Chapter Seven:
“Is there anything in the universe more beautiful and protective than the simple complexity of a spider’s web?”
-CHARLOTTE
I CLOSED my eyes for concentration. This was more difficult than drawing energies from the force line directly into my body. I pointed a finger for focus, pointing at a spot some five yards distant from me.
The idea of drawing energies from a distant location and controlling them would have seemed impossible to me, until Aahz pointed out it was the same as the candle-lighting exercise I had already mastered. Now it did not seem impossible, merely difficult.
Confidently, I narrowed my concentration, and in my mind’s eye saw a gleaming blue light appear at the designated point. Without breaking my concentration, I moved my finger overhead in a slow arc. The light followed the lead, etching a glowing blue trail in the air behind it. As it touched the ground again, or where I sensed the ground to be, I moved my finger again, moving the light into the second arc of the protective pentagram.