The Sin War Box Set: Birthright, Scales of the Serpent, and The Veiled Prophet by Richard A. Knaak Page B

hearing the wild rustling of the grass and even the sound of thunder, but not the voice.
    A momentary nightmare? A figment of his overwrought imagination brought on by the heinous murders? Mendeln could believe the experience nothing else…and yet, it had seemed so very real .
    The throbbing abruptly renewed its assault. His eyes shut again as the pain overcame him.
    And, once more, Mendeln was assailed by the image of the man, only this time the figure lay sprawled helpless on the ground as something loomed over him. Utter fear covered the missionary’s face and he sought in vain to crawl on his back away from whoever approached.
    Mendeln opened his eyes…and the scene vanished.
    This time, though, Uldyssian’s brother understood that what he witnessed was neither a figment nor an event of the present. He was indeed alone in the woods. No, this time, the glimpse had lasted long enough for him to recognize the garments of the screaming man, if not the man himself.
    It had been the garb of an acolyte from the Triune…and the man had been the emissary who had been so brutally slaughtered.
    Mendeln shook. What did it mean? Why was he suddenly having these monstrous visions of the missionary’s murder?
    There had never been any talk of witchcraft in either side of the family and Mendeln himself doubted that such was the case. There had to be a more reasonable, honest explanation.
    His nose itched. Mendeln realized that there was something on the bridge. He brushed at it and was rewarded with several bits of dirt in his palm. In fact, for the first time, he saw that fresh dirt covered most of his fingers.
    When had that happened? Uldyssian’s brother had not been at the farm, much less working in the fields, for some time. He had been too concerned about helping his sibling. Had he for some reason fallen while riding? That might explain both the latest blackout and the dirt.
    “What is… happening?” Mendeln muttered. His life had always been an utterly normal—and even boring—one. Now, everything was turning on its head. These blackouts, Uldyssian’s dire predicament, the ancient stone—
    The stone .
    Mendeln was no believer in coincidence. He had not started to have these blank moments until after touching the artifact. Somehow, it had affected him in a manner that he could not fathom. Oh, Mendeln had heard stories in his childhood about magic places and creatures, but those had been just that, stories.
    Then it occurred to him to wonder why he now specifically saw the murder of the acolyte. The first notion that entered his thoughts drained the blood from his face.
    No…I did not! I could not! Had the reason that he had seen the murder…and from such a frontal angle…been because he had somehow been responsible?
    But common sense prevailed. Mendeln had been with Achilios at the time that the murders had taken place. Therefore, he was innocent of the nefarious events, just as Uldyssian surely was.
    However, that still did not answer for the dirt on his hands nor his odd and lengthening periods of memory loss. The aspects of those frightened Mendeln greatly.
    He thought again of his brother, a prisoner. The image of Uldyssian in the cell steeled Mendeln. He could concern himself with his own troubles when time permitted; what was most important was seeing that Uldyssian languished in the cell no longer than he had to.
    Straightening, Mendeln headed back to Seram. However, as he did, he cautiously wiped his hands clean of any further residue. Perhaps the dirt meant nothing, but he did not want to take any chances. Too many unsettling things were happening and innocent bits of soil might just hint at some new and dire deed. He could not help his brother in the least if he suddenly became suspected of another crime.
    Mendeln grunted at his foolish thinking. Of what crime could dirt-covered hands condemn him in a farming region?
    Nonetheless, Uldyssian’s brother continued to wipe his palms and fingers against his