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I didn’t want to bear responsibility for killing anyone in a freak Gloom rift accident "Without a star to mark this place on the map, we don’t even knoe’re in El Dorado or one of the other abandoned way stations like Thunder Rock"

"This appears to be the sye icon consisting of a solid circle with an upside-down "V" in it In Cyrinthian, it was the symbol for zero A line of symbols ran down the left side of theto the rows of s one of the syht one of the arches, provided the device still worked Unfortunately, it wouldn’t light a corresponding star at this location

Shelton stared at the sy the Alabaster Arch "Should we turn it on and send through an ASE?"

I ed "Sure," I told hiainst the syhan ju for the swords strapped across her back She stopped with theave ht take off one of your fingers"

I smirked "Sorry, couldn’t resist"

The black-and-white-striped arch pulsed with ultraviolet and white energy, jagged bolts arcing fro it The klaxon thru y into the circle around it We waited for several minutes, but no destination appeared within

"Can I have an ASE?" I said, holding out my hand to Elyssa She deposited one of the marble-like spheres in my hand I walked to within a few feet of the silver circle, not daring to get another step close to the deadly looking stor across its surface, spun the ASE, and directed it to go through the arch

The ASE obediently hovered across the circle and made it to within twenty feet or so of the arch before exploding in a cloud of sparks as a flash of ultraviolet nailed it

"Holy Zeus on a tricycle," Shelton cried out in surprise "That thing is broken as hell"

I jogged back to the control button and touched it again The klaxon wound down as the Alabaster Arch de-energized

"Perhaps there is another button to access the Grand Nexus," Cinder suggested, looking the rows up and down

"I ain’t going near that thing," Shelton said

I looked toward the exit and shuddered "Then I guess it’s tilow vest a few times The rest of us took his cue and tested ours to be sure Noas not the time to rush blindly The Arcanes took out their staffs, eyes set in concentration for whatever lay outside Bella brandished a wand in addition to hers Elyssa retrieved a coht she’d brought her own staff I gave her a puzzled look She grinned and snapped out a quarterstaff

"Swords won’t do ainst cherubs," she said "But if I can knock ’em across the cavern, that’ll keep the," I said

She kissed irl"

Shelton and Adam took up positions on either side of the door I twisted the handle, and pulled it open The industrial sized glowballs drifted outside, lighting the immediate vicinity outside the control rooe as the way station in the Grotto, which meant the "X" on the map was a couple hundred yards away in the center

"I don’t suppose anyone can cast one of those light burst spells like Curtis did?" I asked, looking at Bella Curtis had co our estion to take along flashlights, and screairl when a drain rune sucked us dry of aether and nearly left us helpless against shadow people

"It’s a waste of energy," Bella said "Curtis is a bit of a showboat"

"Talk about blowing your entire load for one spell," Shelton said with a chuckle "Aher until we had a clear view in a hundred-foot radius I led the group forward until the door reht, held up my hand for everyone to be quiet, and listened Elyssa closed her eyes, presuroans froiant throats somewhere ahead And then I heard the sound that sent a pant-wetting chill down my back

"Dah nah," croaked an infantile voice

A whistling gurgle answered Cherubs were ahead of us, but not by far I assuhted in the ht, or maybe they just sensed our delicious, crea inferno "Maybe I should do that light spell after all," he said

Elyssa threw out a handful of tiny glowing orbs which swept through the area around us The last time we’d been here, cherubs literally carpeted the cavern floor Elyssa had used thelistened off shiny pitch-colored skin as the orbs drifted along the path toward the center Each time one spotted a cherub, it took up a position directly over their heads By the tiht bobbed above at least twenty cherubs On the bright side, we had a fairly clear path

Bella pointed ahead "Do you see a light?"

"I see light everywhere," Shelton replied, waving a hand at the glowballs above

"No, it’s yellow, not white" She squinted "I think the light we’re putting out lowballs winked out Shelton flicked off the roiling fireball above his staff, leaving us in nearly pitch black aside from the wisp markers over the cherubs