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of you, but my days of being involved in such matters are over. I'm an old woman now and I would only be a hindrance.” She steps back and turns to Absalom. “If there's to be more fighting, we need young warriors, not old fools like us.”
    “I still have something to offer,” Absalom says firmly, with a hint of grit in his voice.
    “I wish I could say the same,” she replies, before glancing back at me. “I have faith in you, Abby. I know you'll do your absolute best.”
    I want to tell her to go to hell, but instead I turn and start walking down the slope that leads to the base of the mountain. “Come on,” I call back to Jonathan and Absalom, “we need to get going. All this talk won't get us any closer to Gothos.”
    I keep walking, not even looking back, not wanting to see Absalom and Oncephalus's lying faces again, until finally I get to the base of the slope and I hear footsteps behind me. A moment later, Jonathan catches up and starts walking next to me. I can tell that he wants to say something, but he seems to be waiting for me to start the conversation instead. He was right earlier: even though we really don't know each other so well yet, we do seem to understand one another on some basic intuitive level. I glance back and see that Absalom isn't far behind us.
    “Maybe you should walk with Absalom,” I mutter finally, turning to Jonathan.
    “Why?”
    “I'm not in the mood for talking right now.”
    “But if -”
    “Can I just be alone?” I ask, increasing my pace. Fortunately he doesn't try to keep up, so I'm able to walk alone with just the vast plains of Jagadoon ahead. All I can think about is the fact that I failed, and that the past six months have been a complete waste of time. There were moments when I actually thought all this training would lead somewhere, but now it's clear I was just deluded. There's a war coming, and I can't do anything to help defeat the spiders. I had a role to play, but I'm not strong enough.
    High above, a crow caws as it wheels across the darkening sky.

Part Two
     
    Storm Warning

Emilia
     
    Rain.
    Rain everywhere, crashing down from the night sky, pounding against the roofs of tin shacks, filling puddles and rivers that have begun to form where the dirt road once ran. So much rain, the landscape is probably going to be changed permanently. What was once an arid stretch of dirt is going to be a swamp by the time the sun comes up.
    I'm soaked to the skin, but there are lights up ahead. I've been walking for five days without pause. Whatever that building is on the horizon, I think I might stop for a few minutes. I hope the natives are friendly.
     
    ***
     
    “Another!” I shout, sliding my empty glass across the bar.
    The barman glances at me, as if he's giving some consideration to the idea of serving me, but then he turns back and continues laughing with the drunk idiots who just came through the door. This place is busy, I get that, and the last thing I want is to stand out from the crowd and get special attention; at the same time, I want to be served properly, and the barman is clearly far more interested in chewing the fat with his friends. Glancing around at some of the other customers nearby, I realize that a few of them have been watching me for a while now, most likely because they think a woman traveling alone should be easy pickings in the mire-lands.
    A shiver passes through my body.
    Why didn't I kill Abby Hart when I saw her at Jagadoon last week?
    I should have found a way, but...
    I close my eyes, and I can see her face now.
    I never knew it was possible to hate one person so much. She murdered Keller...
    A drunk fool bumps against me from behind, and I feel a splash of cold beer hitting the back of my already-soaked shirt. I open my eyes, telling myself not to react, but a moment later the same thing happens again, and then again.
    “Hey!” I shout, turning to punch some sense into the idiot, but there are too many people in this crowded