Athgar bowed deeply, "And the blessings of the Gods be upon you."
"No," corrected Cyric, "not the Gods, the Saints. You"re supposed to be a member of the Brothers of Saint Mathew, remember?"
"I"ll never get this straight," he replied.
"You can do this," said Natalia, smiling. "If I can do it, so can you."
"It"s nice of you to say," said Athgar, "but it"s not so easy, breaking my old habits."
Natalia stood, walking over to him and embraced him. "You need a rest, that"s all, you"ve been going at this all day long."
"I have to get this right," he responded, "or it"ll be both our necks in the noose."
"Actually," offered Cyric, "it would be a chopping block, not a noose."
"Truly?" asked Athgar.
"Yes," said Cyric, "the Church is quite clear on such things. Remember, you"ll be in the for
