EPILOGUE
Phoenix pushed himself to his feet. His right arm hurt but there were more important things to worry about.
“Brynn? Marcus? Are you alright?” he called into the grey-blackness of the night.
His vision was still half-obscured by sparkles of white and red afterimages from the blast.
There were groans off to the right, so he fumbled his way over. Brynn and Marcus helped each other up. They were white with dust but otherwise unhurt.
“What on earth was that?” Marcus sounded shellshocked. “Magic?”
“No,” Phoenix said grimly, “I think the Chinese have discovered gunpowder.”
“Gunpowder?”
“It’s an explosive,” Phoenix said shortly, holding his right arm across his chest. It hurt badly now.
“I think we figured that out,” Marcus said dryly. “Yajat has Jade. He’s taken her to
