All Chapters of The Midnight Sorceress: Chapter 21 - Chapter 25

Ruslan had the impression of an open trapdoor with stone steps leading down, but his mind was no longer working. He felt as if it had been pushed into a tight, dark corner of his skull and locked there like a small, furry animal in a cage. He could still see through his eyes, still hear through his ears, but everything was at a long distance as if he was looking through the wrong end of a telescope.Nothing was important anymore, not where he was going. His thoughts crawled through treacle and were blurred around the edges, slipping and sliding away from him every time he tried to use them. If he concentrated reall

When the falling momentum stopped, they landed on hard ground. Through the opalescent light of the moon and the absence of mist above, Cassandra could see it now. The thing that had dragged her down. It was shaped vaguely like a very tall man, and its long grey arms and legs were covered with matted hair and mud. A terrible stench arose from it. Its feet were clawed like a bird's, but the knobbly fingers which had locked with such strength on her ankle ended in long twisted nails. Then the moonlight shone on its face, and she screamed again, for it had no face, only an open, gaping wound of a mouth, with pendulous wattles of skin hanging below.

"Leave the boy with me," said the sorcerer-king. The demons retreated from the hall and closed the bronze doors behind them. The other sorcerers kept watching by the walls. When the Czar walked towards him, Ruslan looked back nervously. For a long moment, the Czar stood looking down at him without saying a word. His eyes seemed to penetrate his soul. Ruslan tried not to stare back."You must be wondering why you're brought here, young lad." His words were courteous, his manner charming, but it was clear that he had no good int

Owlyn brought back the herbs. Cassandra grounded them into a paste and applied it to the sorceress's wound. The Czarevna was less restless now and her breathing had evened out before she fell asleep again. "Now what are we going to do?" Cassandra whispered softly in despair, her worried eyes kept staring at Vasilisa's pale face. The owl looked at her with a gentle surprise.

Tiredness forced Cassandra to lie down. It was a big boat. Besides her, Vasilisa had fallen into slumber again. Cassandra looked up at the moon, which was as thin as a fingernail. Then, painfully, feeling the boat rock beneath her, she propped herself on one elbow and sat up. The mist was still there, hanging low and ragged over the surface of the water. But the marsh itself had changed."We are almost there, my lady," said Nayris.