CHAPTER 9STEEL AGAINST SORCERY
Within, all was dim and shadowy. The large and sumptuously decorated room was illuminated by wan lamps of perforated silver which leaked a perfumed vapor.
The floor was buried beneath thick carpets woven to depict fanciful gardens, and it was littered with cozy nests of plump pillows. Low divans stood along the walls, draped in shimmering fabrics.
Kellory spared only a swift, all-encompassing glance at these surroundings—which was, in a way, a pity, for the room was exquisitely and strangely decorated. From a huge urn of red stone, a carved wooden tree grew, its sculpted branches hung with glistening plaques of jade and malachite and smalt-blue enamel, like leaves. Dangling fruit hung from the carven branches by thin gold chains: sleek melons carved from e
