growing up, thanks to my governess's idea of what constituted a proper education, but the only time I'd used it outside the schoolroom was when Laura, a ghost friend, and I had amused ourselves thinking up mottos for Tony. Her favorite had been Nunquam reliquiae redire: carpe omniem impremis (Never go back for seconds: take it all the first time). I'd preferred Mundus vult decipi (There's a sucker born every minute), but we settled on Revelare pecunia! (Show me the money!) because it fit better on the shield. I was rusty, but it didn't take long to figure out that, like our efforts, the inscriptions at Dante's weren't as serious as they looked.
Prehende uxorem meant, sis! (Take my wife, please!), begged the placard on the nearest knight. I grinned and moved down the hall, translating as I went. Some of the most amusing were Certe, toto, sentio nos in kansate non iam adesse (You know, Toto, I have a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore), Elvem vivere (Elvis lives), and Estne volumen in amiculum, an solum tibi libet me videre? (Is that a scroll under your cloak, or are you just happy to see me?).
I was crouched in front of a knight about halfway down the hall, trying to figure out the joke, when Pritkin came running full tilt back around the corner. I knew there was a problem before he opened his mouth-the fact that he was trailed by a line of hovering weapons sort of gave it away. "Get up!" he yelled as one of the floating arsenal-a knife long enough to be considered a short sword-took a swipe at him. If he hadn't dodged at the last second, it would have taken off his head. As it was, an arc of bright red blood went flying from his half-severed ear.
I admit that I just stood there for a moment. In my defense, the last time I'd seen Pritkin surrounded by levitating weapons, they had been his own. Before I could figure out why his knife was attacking him, two other figures rounded the corner. I recognized them as the mages who had been facing Enyo in Casanova's earlier. "They aren't with you?" I asked stupidly.
He didn't bother to reply. "Shift us out of here!" he yelled, throwing out an arm like someone doing a bad disco move. The other mages came to an abrupt halt. I didn't know why until I reached out and a tangible wall of energy met my outstretched hand. Pritkin's shields glimmered around us, faintly blue and wavelike in the flickering light from a nearby torch. "Do it!”
"Give us the rogue, Pritkin," one of the mages demanded. He was tall, with a prominent Adam's apple, pallid skin and a booming voice that didn't match his skinny frame. "She isn't worth this.”
"She'll get a fair hearing," the bulkier, African American mage at his side added, although the look he sent me wasn't friendly. "Come peacefully while you can.”
"What's going on?" I asked. The only answer I got was something large whizzing past my face, all of a millimeter from my nose. I jumped back with a shout, just as a heavy mace collided with a nearby suit of armor. That was a lucky break, since the heap of old metal had been about to bring a sword down on my head. The mace caught the thing in the chest, leaving a big dent and sending it staggering back into a tapestry.
I looked around wildly, not understanding what was happening. The mace had sliced through Pritkin's shields as if they weren't there. Even more worrying was the fact that the mages hadn't thrown the thing-it had come from somewhere behind us-but there was nobody back there. One of the knights was missing its weapon, but there was no one around to have thrown it.
A clanging sound caused me to whip my head back around and, for a second, I thought the mages were attacking. But although they were looking even more grim, I was no longer the focus of their interest. Their eyes and weapons were leveled on the damaged suit of armor. Instead of simply falling over, it appeared to be fighting its way out of the tapestry. Once it threw off the heavy material, it started feeling around for its sword, which the impact of the mace had knocked away. But Pritkin grabbed the weapon first and, despite it being almost as tall as he was, leveled it menacingly on the creature.
The knight