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He had diss as improbable out of what appeared to be sheer pride, for no one had ever taken the hold at Black Moon Draw Todoulfed by a curse he had no way of stopping without the battle-witch

The other thought torturing him was one he did not entirely expect

His battle-witch left his side and protection willingly He offered her the kingdom - and she left hi battle? A sign she did not share his feelings? Or was she acting out of fear for her own safety,the curse?

Why did it matter why she chose to leave?

For the second time in recent days, he experienced a cold jolt of what could only be fear

It seehly routed before the battle with his enean With no army and no battle-witch, a city void of people, and two days before the end of the world, his chances of saving his realm had never seemed bleaker

Deterhts and began to think about what advantages he still held

I will go down fighting There was no longer any reason to maintain what restraint he had

His resolve lasted until he set foot into his hold and saw the empty streets of his ho as there did not , he stood on the sate into the heart of his city, dread settling deep into his soul, rattling him in a way he had never experienced

The streets were silent - but not empty Men, women, and children - frozen in place the day the battle queen placed a spell upon the realm - crowded the streets, merchants' alleys, and domiciles of the city A hundred thousand souls and not a one of the in their features in the ht For a thousand years, they had been statues, waiting patiently for their ruler to rescue theainst her uards on the wall, each was perfectly preserved in the white stone of the cliffs

Not even a suarded a haunted city filled with stone inhabitants No one living had occupied the city for alic contained in the hold at its center turning anyone who reed to escape before then went mad, and no one who entered the hold at its center had ever left