WE HIT KERAK'S SADDLE HARD, and both of us yelped. Bruised hips all round, I thought, wincing. Thick smoke swirled around us, and the stench of burnt flesh made me gag. Rumal had a firm grip on the leather strap that held Kassie and I together, keeping us from going anywhere for the moment. Kerak dropped to the spot that Loi had shielded, the only un-burnt ground for miles.

'Hurry, Cat!' Alek yelled from Loushka's back as I struggled with the knot on the strap. 'Loi needs ...