There was silence for several moments after Sapphire seemed to play herself out, looking at Jenna with those ominous eyes and panting from the exertion of such an outburst, as Jenna simply stood there with her hands folded in front of her, looking as contrite and vulnerable as she could possibly look. It was a trick Jenna used to devastating effect against her father, and it had allowed her to weasel out of a great deal of punishment when she was a little girl.

A devious nature was something of a family trait on the female side of Tarrin's family line.

But Sapphire had the same mettle as their mother, and Elke Kael had been immune to her daughter's suffering and simpering posturings. She glowered at Jenna for a moment as she recovered from her tirade, then she sighed and looked to Tarrin. "I feel much better now," she admitted.

"I don't think Jenna agrees with you," he said absently.

"You're right," she said in a weak voice.

"I would not have been able to focus on the matter at hand if I hadn't gotten that out of my system," she said conversationally.

"Has Spyder contacted you, Jenna?" he asked.

"She did. She said she's coming, and we have something serious to talk about. You have any idea what she means?"

"Yes. We're about to stop a second Blood War, Jenna," he said grimly. "Before it has a chance to get out of control."

"What?" she asked woodenly.

"The same people who attacked the Tower aren't done yet, sister. They've rebuilt their army, they have Val raising an army of Demons to aid them, and Spyder herself is going to put a hand in to stop it. So are all the gods, both Elder and Younger. This is going to be a direct confrontation, Jenna," he said with unwavering eyes. "If we don't stop this here and now, it's going to be the Blood War all over again."

"I can understand why she's so upset," Jenna said, putting a hand to her stomach. "But what does this have to do with Jasana?"

"She's being held in the middle of that army," he said emotionlessly. "That's going to make getting her out a bit tricky."

"I can tell you have a plan, little one. What is it?" Sapphire asked.

Tarrin sat down in the chair in front of Jenna's desk. Jenna sat in her own, and Sapphire in the one beside his. He Conjured up a small map of the area of Gora Umadar, which consisted of little more than a square surrounded by a large circle. But it geographically correct and to scale, since it was a Conjured creation. "This is Gora Umadar," he told them.

Jenna whistled. "They're holding Jasana there?"

He nodded. "It's a big pyramid built on the tundra," he told Sapphire. "Spyder told me about it. Val's icon is in the pyramid, and that's where the Demon took Jasana. I can get her out, but it won't be easy." He traced a finger around the circle. "This line is where all the snow is melted," he told them. "They must be using some kind of magic to keep the area warm, because they've got a few hundred thousand Goblinoid and human soldiers surrounding the pyramid."

Jenna frowned. "That must be where all the survivors from the battle here went."

"As well as their armies from probably every stronghold they have here in the West," he added. "I went to the place where they had Jegojah's Soultrap, and the place is completely empty."

"Where is that?" Sapphire asked.

"A castle overlooking the Petal Lakes," he answered.

"Castle Keening," Jenna told them. "Sitting on the road leading out of the Iron Pass."

"Well, it's empty now, and I'll bet Val's recalled all his troops that were within marching distance to Gora Umadar. Val's also been raising Demons by the hundreds to add to his army, and that's what Spyder and the gods are getting involved to stop. You know that all of this is about the Firestaff," he told her.

She nodded. "They took Jasana to make you give it to them," she said.

"I'm going to use that to get her back," he said. "The Firestaff only works on day every five thousand years, and I'm going to make sure I get to Gora Umadar on that day. The immediacy of the situation is going to give me a bargaining chip. It's the only time I think I could get that close to Val and face him directly."

"Why is that so important?"

"Because I want his attention on me," he told her. "I'm taking Jesmind with me. While I'm holding Val's attention, Jesmind is going to get out of there with Jasana. Only after they're clear will I pretend to be willing to give him the Firestaff, and that's where you're going to come in."

"Us? How?"

"At that moment, I'm going to need a huge distraction," he said dryly. "I think something along the lines of a powerful army arriving to do battle with Val's forces will qualify. With a little luck, I can escape in the chaos. Val has turned Gora Umadar into a void, but I know I can do other kinds of magic. I'm going to have Triana teach me some way to escape from Gora Umadar with a Druidic spell. That way, after Jesmind gets Jasana out of there, I can get out myself."

"Why not just go alone and use the same trick to kidnap Jasana back?"

"Because me being in the pyramid is going to distract them," he told her plainly. "You're going to need that kind of a distraction, sister. Val is a god. Don't forget that. If he catches you before you can get a chance to set up, he'll slaughter your army. But if all his attention is on me, you have a chance to get there and set up before he can respond."

"Besides, little one, I doubt that they would let Tarrin get that close to his daughter," Sapphire added. "They know he is a powerful magician. They will take no chances that he has a little surprise. And Val would be a fool to allow Jasana to leave without Tarrin remaining behind, so he must have someone with him to help him. But why Jesmind? Kimmie or Triana would be better."

"Jesmind is Jasana's mother," he said. "She will obey Jesmind without question. She won't even do that for Triana. And at that point, Jasana doing exactly what she's told could mean the difference between life and death."

"You have a point," Sapphire acceded.

"The only sticking point I have right now is how to get them out once they get out of the pyramid," he admitted. "There's going to be a hostile army between them and freedom, and they'll attack as soon as Jesmind comes out."

"I can take care of that, little one," Sapphire said. "Sandwing is very young, and his youth gives him both speed and brashness. And he a very small dragon yet, so he won't be so large as to cause any undue trouble."

"One of yours?"

"My youngest," she nodded. "The one that took so long to get word to me. He is as small to me as a baby is to you." Tarrin considered that, realizing that Sandwing was probably only about a hundred spans long, where Sapphire was five hundred. A much smaller, sleeker, and probably faster and more agile dragon, but still a dragon. Something not even the most fanatical Troll would dare to cross.

"That will work," he nodded to her. "The timing is going to have to be perfect, and your child may have to think on his feet, but it can work."

"Sandwing is a very clever dragon," she told him confidently. "He will do fine."

"Well, that takes care of the only real hole I had," he said.

"What's the rest of the plan?" Jenna asked.

He got up and started to pace. "Timing is going to be everything in this," he told them. "I asked Phandebrass to draw me up a chart so I'll know exactly when the conjunction happens. I have to get there before that happens, but not so late that it does happen while I'm there. I want Val watching the clock every second, desperate to get the Firestaff from me before the conjunction occurs. That's going to be the only window where I'll be able to extort demands out of him. With me right there and the Firestaff within his grasp, I'm confident he'll let Jesmind and Jasana leave as long as I stay behind. That's what matters. After they're out of danger, then I'll get out of there. Val and the others know I can do other forms of magic, but they don't know how strong I am with Druidic magic. With the void, I'm fairly certain they'll assume that they're preventing me from escaping using magic. I want that to be a nasty shock for them," he said with a grim smile.