Chapter sixThe new locus of magic turned out to be a Wizard of Cromal. He walked in with an altogether new expedition unknown to us. They were not in good case, having suffered considerably from the horrors down here. They had few porters left and their warriors looked grimy and battered. All the same, the leader, a one-eared Khibil called Vad Valadian, was prepared to be as haughty as any damn-you-to-hell Khibil considered he had every right to be.
The sorcerer wore robes that had once been impressive. His narrow face bore a shrewd look owing more to knowledge of the world and native cunning than arcane thaumaturgical understanding. He called himself Tse-Tsu-Luenling. He was not a Wizard of Loh. Oh, surely, he’d been born in the continent of Loh down south in Shirnlee, not in Whonban. No
