The pillars of creation

Jagang turned to stare off to where the light was finally dying. "Dear Creator," he whispered, "that's right where the army is." He wiped a hand back across his shaved head as he considered the frightening implications. "How could they ignite a light web among our army? We're warded for that! How!"

Sister Perdita's eyes turned toward the ground. "There is no way for us to tell, Excellency. It could be something as simple as a box containing an ancient light web from which he removed all the fail-safes and then left it for us to come across. As our men set up camp, maybe a man found it, wondered what was in the innocent-looking little box, opened it, and the light of day was the final trigger. It could be something else entirely else that we could never begin to dream up or imagine, much less forestall. We'll never know. Whoever triggered it is now part of that cloud of smoke hanging over the river valley."

"Excellency," Sebastian said, "I urgently advise that we get the army out of here-move them back." He paused to wince in pain. "If they're able to unleash such a defense-with all the gifted and their protection we have-then taking the Keep might be impossible."

"But we must!" Jagang roared.

Sebastian sagged forward, waiting for a stitch of pain to pass. "Excellency, if we lose the army, then Lord Rahl will triumph. It's as simple as that. Aydindril is not worth the risk it has proven itself to be." This was not so much the Sebastian Jennsen knew, as it was Sebastian, the Order's strategist, speaking. "Better for us to withdraw and fight another day on our terms, not theirs. Time is our ally, not theirs."

In silent fury, the emperor stared off toward his imperiled army as he considered Sebastian's advice. There was no telling how many men had just died.

"This is Lord Rahl's doing," Jagang finally whispered. "He has to be killed. In the Creator's name, he must be killed."

Jennsen knew that she was the only one who could accomplish such a thing.

CHAPTER 51

jennsen paced in the dimly lit tent, her footsteps silent across the emperor's opulent carpets. A Sister stood vigil near the outer entry, making sure that no one could come into the tent to disturb the emperor, or, more important, to harm him. Outside, a massive contingent of guards, including more Sisters, patrolled the area. Occasionally, the Sister over by the outer entry glanced at Jennsen as she paced.

Pacing was all she could do. Her insides were a painful knot of worry over Sebastian. He had lost consciousness on the long ride back to the encampment. Sister Perdita said that he was in danger of losing his life. Jennsen couldn't bear the thought of losing him. He was all she had.

Emperor Jagang was also in grave condition after having lost so much blood and then having to endure the long hard ride back with the tattered remnants of the elite cavalry, but he'd refused to delay his return for any reason, even his own well-being. He never thought of himself, only of getting back to his army. Both men were at last now secure in the confines of the emperor's tents, being attended to by Sisters of the Light. Jennsen had wanted to stay with Sebastian, but the Sisters chased her out.

The emperor had been made worse by the sight of the army. He'd been fit to kill anyone who gave him an excuse. Jennsen could understand his rage of emotion.

The light web had ignited close to the center of the encampment, Even this many hours after the event, the place was still mass confusion.

Many units had scattered, preparing for the possibility of an imminent attack. Others, it was suspected, had simply run for the hills. In the area where the light web had ignited there was nothing but a vast depression of blackened ground. In the ensuing chaos, no one had been able to determine how many men had been killed. It was next to impossible, with so many either killed or scattered, to get an accurate count of units, much less individuals, but there was no argument that the devastation was staggering.

Jennsen had overheard whispers of over half a million men turned to dust in an instant, and maybe as many as twice that number. In the end, the number killed might prove to be much higher; there were inestimable numbers of seriously injured soldiers-men burned or blinded, men severely cut or with limbs taken off by flying debris, men partially crushed by heavy wagons and equipment toppling on them, men made deaf, men so insensate, so stupefied, that they could only stare unblinking at nothing. There were not enough army surgeons or Sisters of the Light to even begin to attend to the tiniest fraction of the wounded. With every hour that passed, thousands of those who survived the initial blast died of their injuries.