"And so the other reason why you want to divide the vellum in half is to lessen its deadly effects, should Krassus have actually enchanted it," Tristan surmised.

"Well done," Wigg replied. He looked concernedly over at Abbey. "Are you still willing to try?"

Abbey shook her head. "Just how strong is this warp of yours?" she asked Faegan.

"As powerful as I could make it," Faegan answered. "But there are no guarantees."

Sighing, Abbey rubbed her brow. Then she looked up at Wigg and gave him an ironic smile. "I just had to come back to Tammerland with you, didn't I?" she said ruefully. Glaring back at Faegan, she raised her eyebrows. "Is there nothing else that can be done to help protect me?" she asked. "Surely that legendary brain of yours can come up with something."

Looking up at the sky, Faegan took a few moments to mull it over. "There might be something," he said finally.

"And what is that?" Wigg asked.

"If I begin to see the cube eroding, Wigg and I can try to shore it up again," Faegan answered slowly, thinking out loud. "Though by then it might already be too late."

He looked up into Abbey's eyes. "Do you trust me to keep you alive?" he asked seriously.

Obviously unsure, Abbey hesitated. "Is there any other choice?" she finally asked resignedly. When neither of the wizards answered, she gave a short, derisive laugh. Then she bent over and put her mouth near Faegan's ear. "If you let me die, I'll kill you," she said, fully realizing the absurdity of her words.

Faegan let go a soft cackle. "If you die, I'll let you," he answered. "Now then, shall we begin? But first I suggest that the rest of you retire to a much safer distance. Wigg, if you would."

Wigg nodded, then turned to face the new brick wall he and Faegan had conjured that morning, upon coming to their disturbing conclusions.

Raising one arm, Wigg loosed an azure bolt against it. When the bolt reached it, it flattened out, encasing the wall entirely. Apparently satisfied, the lead wizard dropped his arm.

"Just another little precaution in case something should go wrong." Faegan winked. "Now then, I want everyone except Abbey and myself behind that wall."

Wigg watched them all go, then gave Abbey a kiss on the cheek. "Good luck," he said quietly. Then he joined the others. The wall was just tall enough for the three of them to see over.

When Faegan was satisfied that the others were safe, he looked at the herbmistress. "Please give me the scrap of vellum." Once she did so, he used the craft to divide the ancient skin in two. He returned one piece to her, then nodded. "You may begin whenever you are ready," he told her. "And may the Afterlife look over us."

Taking a deep breath, Abbey opened the leather cinch bag Faegan had given her and removed two smoke-colored bottles. Taking a pinch of herbs from the first bottle, she tentatively reached through one side of the cube, watching as its azure wall closed in around her arm. Finally satisfied, she dropped the herbs to the floor of the cube and withdrew her arm.

Closing her eyes, she bowed her head.

Almost immediately, the familiar golden flame erupted, slowly snaking its way toward the open top of the cube. Abbey reached back through the side and cast a few more of the herbs into the flame. Roaring even higher, the gazing flame gained strength and color. Abbey removed her hand from the cube and backed away a bit. Raising one arm, she silently commanded the flame to split into two separate branches. The smaller of the branches angled toward her.

Opening the other bottle of herbs, she carefully measured some out, then reached into the cube again and dropped the herbs into the nearest of the branched flames.

The two branches rejoined, returning to the vertical. Placing the two bottles on the ground at her feet, Abbey took the piece of vellum in both hands and raised it high.

As she watched the fire, a rectangular, azure window appeared in its midst. Within its confines, an image slowly formed. Faegan wheeled his chair closer to the edge of the cube and peered in.

A street scene was unfolding. It looked like a plaza of some kind. But which city? Faegan wondered. And for that matter, which country? Eutracia or Parthalon? Trying to examine the image was maddening-like trying to solve a shimmering, constantly moving puzzle with several of the pieces missing. But then Faegan saw the familiar statues.

The Plaza of Fallen Heroes! he realized. The Scroll of the Vigors was there in Tammerland, right under their noses!

But suddenly the piece of vellum in Abbey's hand began to quiver and turn azure. Nearly beside herself with fear, the horrified herbmistress turned to Faegan.

"Get out!" she shouted. She shoved her arm into the warp, and dropped the ancient scrap inside. Immediately, she hiked up her skirts and charged toward the protective wall. Shaking off his shock, Faegan levitated his chair and soared over the courtyard to join her and the others.

As they all watched in horror, the vellum in the cube began to emit strange pinpricks of light. With the birth of the lights came great screeching sounds, so loud that the people behind the wall could barely stand the pain in their ears.

The pinpricks became shafts, and the shafts increased in size and began ricocheting against the inner walls of the cube. Some of them soared up through the open top, screaming their way into the empty sky above. The entire cube shook and jumped violently on the grass.

And then the walls of the cube began to crack.

Like sharp, threatening crevices wending their way through melting ice, the fissures in the walls of the cube started to lengthen. Levitating his chair over the top of the wall, Faegan hovered there and raised his arms. Then he loosed an azure bolt at the disintegrating cube, trying to shore it up against the power of the shrieking beams of light. Straining with effort, Faegan began to shake.

Tristan watched in dread as the walls of the cube continued to shake, split, and crack. Hurrying out from behind the wall, Wigg shot another azure bolt against the cube. But even with the lead wizard's added power, it was clear that Faegan's warp was deteriorating. It wouldn't be long now, Tristan realized, before more of the beams of light were unleashed.

Then he heard Faegan scream something out to Wigg. The lead wizard quickly nodded. As one they both sent out azure bolts to lift the cube from the ground, the piece of vellum still inside it. Using all their power, they began moving it over to one side of the courtyard, near the northern wing of the palace.

Transfixed, Tristan realized what the wizards were about to do. His jaw dropped. Were they insane?

With a great, final heave, the wizards shoved the cube toward double, side-by-side stained-glass windows. It tore through them as if they were made of paper, and kept on going.

Tristan watched, aghast, as the flashes of light screamed within the castle chambers. They lit up the rooms with what looked to be lightning strikes. He heard furniture being rent apart, glass breaking, and interior walls tumbling and crashing. Sections of the palace roof heaved, throwing marble pieces high into the air. Some of the beams of light escaped and tore their way across the courtyard to slam into the opposite wing of the palace.

At last, it was over. Dust and debris choked the entire courtyard. Into its midst, swarms of concerned Minion warriors landed, dreggans drawn. Coughing deeply, Tristan, Shailiha, and Celeste walked out from behind the wall to rejoin the wizards.

"Faegan!" Tristan exclaimed. "What in the name of the Afterlife just happened?"

"Never mind that now!" the wizard shot back, anxiously waving his arms. Tristan wasn't sure he had ever seen him so animated. "The Scroll of the Vigors is in the Plaza of Fallen Heroes, I'm sure of it! But it's on the move! And it seems to be wrapped in something, as if its current owner is trying to hide it! This may be our only chance to bring it back!"