earthquake. The vibrations ceased as a dozen fiery streaks shot up from the ground and arced up into the night- black sky above the Sprawl. The streaks flew northward and were rapidly lost to view.
Varney moaned. 'My producer is going to kill me for not being able to film this!'
'Look at the map,' Devona said in a tone that held equal parts of awe and fear.
We all did as she said and saw a dozen miniature recreations of the flame trails heading toward Glamere from the south.
'Are those missiles?' I asked.
'Yes,' Klamm answered without taking his eyes off the holo-display. 'Fired from silos surrounding Demon's Roost. Each contains a payload of a dozen salamanders.' The light from the holographic recreation of the missiles bathed his face in bright orange, and it made his glossy black eyes gleam. 'My own special design.'
None of us could take our gazes away from the holographic scene playing out before us. We all watched silently as the missiles arced downward and impacted on the forest floor of the Greensward in a circle around Woodhome. I had no doubt that the salamanders Klamm referred to weren't the tiny amphibious creatures of Earth but rather mythological salamanders, magical fire lizards capable of igniting vast conflagrations. The recreation wasn't detailed enough for us to see exactly what happened once the missiles hit, but I imagined panels in the sides of the missiles popping open and hordes of small redhided salamanders pouring forth. An instant later, a wall of flame sprang up around Woodhome and immediately began moving away from Talaith's stronghold, devouring the Greensward as it went. I imagined the salamanders scuttling forward in a circle, obeying a preprogrammed geis to keep their flames away from Woodhome. It seemed Varvara had been telling the truth when she said she wouldn't attack Talaith's stronghold.
Talaith didn't waste any time in striking back. Three small dots of light emerged from the holographic recreation of Woodhome, and flew up and over the rapidly expanding circle of fire.
'The Weyward Sisters,' Varvara said. 'Talaith's dispatched them to put out the fire.' The Demon Queen spoke with barely contained excitement, sounding like an overeager sports fan watching a particularly tense moment in the game. Thread-thin beams of light emerged from the dots representing the Weyward Sisters and lanced downward into the circle of flame. The salamanders' fire flickered and slowed down, but it continued spreading.
Klamm smiled. 'Those aren't ordinary salamanders. They've been both mystically and genetically augmented to withstand any attack. The Sisters might be able to extinguish the flames the salamanders have already created, but they won't be able to stop them from making more.'
'Another of your 'special designs'?' I asked.
Klamm looked up from the holo-display long enough to give me a smug smile before returning his attention to the action.
We continued to watch as the Weyward Sisters unleashed one mystic bolt after another in an attempt to stop the salamanders' fiery march across the Greensward, but while they were able to douse the flames the creatures created, they couldn't stop the salamanders themselves. Finally the Sisters broke off their attack and flew up to a point above Woodhome where they gathered together.
'What are they doing?' Varvara asked.
Shamika had been silent since we'd entered Varvara's penthouse, but she spoke now. 'Since they can't destroy the salamanders, they're going to prevent them from spreading their fires throughout all of Glamere. And there's only one way to do that.'
Devona's eyes widened in sudden comprehension. 'Destroy the rest of the Greensward. That way, they won't have anything to burn.'
Shamika nodded, and we watched as the three dots representing the Weyward Sisters began to blaze with light so intense that it was hard to look at them directly. The light then pulsed outward in a wave that rolled over the rest of the Greensward, and an instant later, the forest was gone. I wasn't sure what sort of spell the Weyward Sisters had used, but it was damned powerful, disintegrating the surviving trees instantly. The salamanders' flames continued to burn for a few seconds longer after that, but denied fuel, their flames died out. The Weyward Sisters then parted, each of them flying down into the burnedout plain where the Greensward had been and flying low over the ground.
'What are they doing?' Varney asked. 'Capturing the salamanders?'
Varvara nodded. 'Since they no longer have to worry about saving the Greensward, their magic can protect them from the salamanders' flames. They can just pick them up off the ground now. But it doesn't matter. My little pets have done their work.'
I thought she was going to say something more, but before she could speak again, the image of a woman's head appeared above the holographic recreation of Woodhome. It was Talaith.
She appeared to be in her late sixties, with short gray hair, baggy eyes, and sagging skin. Her expression was normally fixed in a permanent tight-lipped scowl, but now her features were twisted with rage.
'How dare you!' she said in a low voice.
Varvara smiled sweetly at Talaith. 'You made the first move, love.'
'You kidnapped my people!'
'I've told you, I had nothing to do with that. And even if I had, do you really think the abduction of a few witches and warlocks rates the destruction of both bridges to my Dominion? It's hardly what I would call a reasonable response, dear.'
'I'll show you a reasonable response, you demonic slut! I'll-' Talaith broke off, frowning. The image of her head slowly rotated until she was looking at me.
'Richter!' She said my name like it was a particularly nasty venereal disease. 'I should've known you would be involved in this!'
'Actually, one of his friends is among the missing magic-users,' Varvara said. 'Matt came here to find out if I knew anything about his disappearance. Technically, I suppose that means he's on your side.'
'Don't insult me,' I muttered.
Talaith's eyes burned with such hatred that I was glad I was only looking at a mystic projection of her and not the real thing. If she had been here, she'd have likely hit me with a spell so powerful it would've reduced me to an undead smear on the floor.
'You've been a thorn in my side for far too long, Richter,' she said. 'First I'm going to deal with Varvara, and when I'm finished with her, I'm coming for you.'
'Don't write checks your ass can't cash, dear,' Varvara said.
Talaith whirled back to face her, snarled, and then the image of her head faded as she broke contact.
Varvara grinned. 'That went well, didn't it?' She grinned at Klamm. 'Excellent work, General.'
Klamm bowed his head. 'It's my pleasure to serve you, my queen. I'll have my people begin assessing the damage and running simulations to determine what Talaith's next move might be.' He glanced sideways at us. 'About our visitors… They've seen far too much, my queen. While I understand that you find the zombie amusing, he and his companions should be placed in holding cells where we can keep an eye on them until the current situation with the Arcane is resolved. It would be the…' he paused, searching for the right word. ' prudent thing to do.'
Varvara smiled at him. 'In case you hadn't noticed, General, I'm not one for making the prudent choice. Where's the fun in that? Matt is far more interesting when he's allowed to roam free, causing his own unique brand of chaos.'
I frowned. 'I'm not sure if that's a compliment or an insult.'
Varvara grinned. 'Works either way.'
I couldn't help but smile back. 'Guess so.' But then I grew serious. 'You know Talaith will take the destruction of the Greensward as seriously as if you had attacked Woodhome. Unlike you, Talaith doesn't embrace technology, and she forces her people to live in harmony with nature – whether they like it or not. To her, destroying a forest is the same as destroying a city full of people. Actually, she probably considers it to be worse. And the Greensward isn't just a simple collection of trees, it's her personal forest, the one surrounding her home. Whatever she does next, it'll make the destruction of the bridges pale in comparison.'
Varvara's grin took on a dark edge. 'I'm counting on it.'
