On the way back, they didn't need to follow any tracks, only keep their bearings. And with much less weight to carry, the church squad's forced march at night was almost as fast as it had been by day.
Kraun saw the light from the oil lamp in Savas's hand suddenly shoot ahead. He realized with a start that they had already left the area shrouded in Gray Fog.
They picked up the pace and left the area. Looking around, Kraun recognized that Zhalu Village was only a few hundred meters farther on.
Nick rested a hand on the Holy Emblem and cried aloud, "Praise the Lord of Flame! The Gray Fog hasn't spread to town yet."
They raced down the mountain, entered the village, mounted their horses, and galloped away.
On the road, Nick kept whipping his horse's rump, leading the way at the front.
The rapid clatter of hooves shattered the quiet of the early morning. They raced all the way to the church, arriving before the sun had risen.
"Knock, knock, knock."
The Father pounded on the door with his fist. "Quasimodo, open up!"
"Coming, coming!"
The door had barely opened a crack when Nick pushed his way inside.
"Father, what happened?"
The doorman couldn't understand what had happened to make the usually gentle and refined Father so agitated.
"Is everything you said true?"
After hearing Nick's account, Hamfa, who had just been looking half-asleep, instantly came fully awake. He muttered to himself, "How is that possible? How could the Gray Fog start spreading outward from the mountains? Weren't the cities of the Great Old Ones all sunk beneath the sea?"
The Great Old Ones, cities, the sea floor. Kraun picked out these words. His keen intuition told him that the church knew what was about