The plummet toward the lake below was painstakingly slow, but it was nothing compared to the landing. Gavner held his breath, but it was all that he could do to keep himself from screaming and letting it all out once he plunged into the subarctic water. The current from the falling water forced Gavner down forty feet or so, from whereupon he opened his eyes. He did not have much strength to do more than that, as his muscles were still frozen in shock. When he gathered enough willpower, he broke out of his trance and started to swim around the iceberg. His body was in a state of paradox, as the water was so cold that his skin felt as if it was on fire.

He continued until he was clear of the large mass of ice, and on the shore. Breaking through the surface of the water, Gavner gasped in a breath of new air as he began running for dry land. Finally, Gavner’s feet hit the warm grass, and he was out of the water, but he did not stop there. Turning, Gavner began his journey around the mountain to the North Side. He was rounding the east side, which was terraced farm land. The terraces were not bad, as they went in one-foot increments, so he could simply step over them. A smile crossed his face as he thought of General Xnias. Gavner was home free now. There was no way that they were going to stop his journey, and when he came back, he would not be alone. Gavner finally cleared the terraces, and began to sprint. As he sprinted, he steadily began to increase his pace until he was at the threshold of fliting speed. Taking one last look at Al Kitar, and the battlefield, he crossed the speed barrier and began traveling upwards of one thousand miles per hour.

As he “flitted” through the landscape, Gavner had no idea where he was going, but the moon was beautiful, and so was the countryside, so he was content. Suddenly the figure of a great black Pegasus came into his vision. There was a cool air about it as if it was an apparition, but Echo’s familiar booming voice resounded in the vampire’s head.

“Gavner,” it said, “Black Shadow has made camp. Follow the constellation of Vir Fortis, and you will reach his camp in a deciduous place by a stream.”