And behind man and stallion and hounds and bear cub streamed millions upon millions of flowers, erupting from the sterile earth, waving their beauty into sun and wind.
Qeteb turned away, preparing to run — if he could, in this damn mud — and was stunned into immobility.
Before him stood a beautiful man with curly black hair and dark blue eyes, his face awash with pity and love. At his back, her hands resting on the man's shoulders, stood a woman with bright curly golden hair, and an expression of peace and contentment upon her lovely face.
Qeteb tried to back away, but the sticky earth clung to his feet and ankles, and he found he could not move.
"You are trapped," said Caelum.
"No! "Qeteb said. "No!"
"You shall not win," said RiverStar, and she leaned close to Caelum and planted a soft kiss on his neck, one of her hands rubbing caressingly up into his hair.
Her brother turned his face slightly, and smiled for her, then looked back to Qeteb.
"You cannot win," he said. "Don't you know that?"
"I won!" Qeteb shouted, his hands clenched into great fists at his sides. "DragonStar's witches failed!"
RiverStar laughed, soft and prettily and deep in her throat, and that sound drove Qeteb into rage.
"I won!" he screamed, trying to reach the pair and tear them apart. But the field would not let him move, and Caelum and RiverStar stood maddeningly undamaged just two paces before him.
"I won! I won! I won!"
"No," said Caelum. "You did not. All of DragonStar's witches won. Faraday won, for she chose self-sacrifice rather than let a child she loved die."
"But the child still died!"
"Nevertheless," RiverStar said, her voice hard, "she won. She offered herself for Love.
Sheol had to let Faraday go for you to win."
"And those two demented fools who rescued that cub? They were crushed to death, damn it!"
Caelum laughed. "Death means nothing," he said, "for do not I and my sister stand here before you?"
"They also," said RiverStar, "offered themselves for Love. They were prepared to lose the confrontation rather than let the cub die. Mot and Barzula, on the other hand, preferred to sacrifice Love. They lost. "
"All DragonStar's witches won," Caelum said. "Your fate is assured."
And then he turned and gathered RiverStar into his arms, and kissed her, and then they both faded from view as Qeteb roared and screamed and bellowed.
No! It could not be!
He turned again, vaguely hoping that somewhere behind him he would see his five companions riding to his rescue — where were they when he needed them? — but there was nothing but the ploughed field, and the much, much closer horse and rider.
The clamour of hounds rose up about his ears.
Qeteb set his back to the Hunter, his eyes jerking at the confusing patterns in the plough lines before him, and the field allowed the Midday Demon to continue his hopeless slog through its clinging earth.
DragonStar raised himself in his saddle and screamed. The Wolven was now slung over his back. He drew forth the lily sword and thrust it into the sky.
At his signal, the Alaunt surged forward, past Hunter and Star Stallion, and towards the distant figure struggling through the field.
The Hunt was on!
Qeteb turned once more —
— always turning, turning, turning, lost and confused in thefield —
— and faced the hounds. He snarled, and raised his massive
forearms, thrusting his fists into the sky. His mouth moved, as if to form words, but he was incapable of any lucid speech, and so
incoherence and spittle dribbled forth in equal amounts from his thick, rubbery lips.
The Alaunt approached, but they did not attack immediately. Instead they encircled him, pacing slowly, their bodies close to the ground, their vicious snouts turned towards him.
DragonStar pulled the Star Stallion to a dancing halt several paces away. Directly behind the stallion, and out of Qeteb's direct sight, the bear cub lumbered to a halt, then plonked himself down on the earth, rolled over onto his side and swatted playfully at the stallion's tail.
Qeteb did not see the cub at all.
DragonStar slowly dismounted. "My hounds hunger for your blood," he said.
"They shall not have me!" Qeteb said. "I am more than a match for these foolish dogs."
DragonStar made a small gesture with one of his hands, and the Alaunt stopped their relentless encirclement of the Demon, and sat down, their heads cocked curiously towards DragonStar.
