The Elves of Cintra (Book 2 of The Genesis of Shannara)

“I thought that your staff was special. What makes it do that?”


“A kind of power.” He shrugged dismissively.

“Like a fire?”

“Sort of.”

“You can summon it when you want?”

“Yes. Did you see something move a minute ago?”

She grinned through the darkness. “Sure. So did you. That’s why you did whatever you did to your staff. I wanted to see or I would have said something. Those are Lizards watching us.”

He felt a flush of irritation heat his face. “I don’t like games. Why didn’t you just say something?”

“These Lizards know me. They guard this place. We’re in the Senator’s territory now. He’s the one who’s going to help us.”

Logan let the magic settle back into the staff, the blue glow diminishing to darkness, the heat of its power cooling. “I thought you knew where we were going.”

She nodded. “I do. But this is in the Senator’s territory, so we need to visit him first. He expects it.”

“Who is this Senator?” he asked.

“You’ll see.”

She clapped her hands sharply, and a clutch of Lizards slid from the shadows, their big, cumbersome forms materializing as if by magic. Logan did not panic. There was no effort made to seize or restrain him, and the girl began speaking to them almost immediately. She did not use any language with which he was familiar, but a kind of guttural speech that relied heavily on grunts and slurs. The Lizards seemed to understand, answering her back, one or two nodding and gesturing, as well. Cat glanced at him briefly and smiled her reassurance, pointing ahead.

“Our destination,” she said.

It was a majestic old stone building with a long rise of broad steps leading to a veranda lined with pillars that supported a massive overhang, the face of which was carved with strange symbols and figures. From within the building, through windows scarred by time and weather and between cracks in fifteen-foot-high doors closed tightly against the night, light glimmered in a soft, pulsating rhythm. A steady murmur emanated from within, rising and falling like an ocean’s tide. Atop the steps stood a dozen more of the Lizards bearing an odd assortment of weapons—prods, flechettes, and antique single-shots—a ragtag arsenal for a ragtag band.

Cat headed directly for the stairs and the Lizards.

“Is this really necessary?” Logan asked, catching up and falling into step beside her.

She gave him a sideways glance. “Like I said, we are in the Senator’s territory. We are here at his sufferance. He considers it rude not to pay a courtesy visit. He says it is all part of the political process.”

Political process? Logan looked closely at the building ahead. “Was this a church once? A temple of some kind?”

She shrugged. “It belongs to the Senator now. He uses it to conduct debates and pass laws. He uses it as a forum to speak to his constituents.”

He gave a mental shake of his head and let the matter drop as they began to climb the steps toward the huge doors. When they got to within a dozen feet, one of the Lizards came forward to speak with Cat. She answered briefly and turned to him.

“You aren’t carrying any weapons, are you? The staff is all you have?”

He nodded.

“Because if you are and they find out, they will kill you on the spot. There have been several assassination attempts on the Senator already this year.”

“Nothing but the staff,” he reaffirmed.

She said something more to the Lizard, and it nodded and stepped back. A second pair of Lizards, stationed to either side of the entrance, pulled down on the door handles to open them.

Logan and the girl stepped inside.

And into another world.

Rows of benches faced a dais filled with a strange collection of statues and hangings and artifacts. There were cases stocked with ancient, leather-bound books, their spines an identical mix of red and gold, lined up in symmetrical rows. There were pictures and paintings of people who were dressed in clothes from an earlier time. A huge wooden cross hung from the wall at the back of the room, its arms draped with silk streamers. The statues were of iron and marble, some of men and women posing, some of strange creatures with bodies half human and half animal. One statue was of a woman blindfolded and holding forth a set of scales. One wall was covered with old clocks that no longer worked, but all of their hands pointed straight up.