Viviana gave a start, then turned slowly, chin held high. Despite her surprise, she was not afraid.
Stalking toward her was a man dressed in black. One gloved hand gripped a skull-topped walking stick, and a wide-brimmed hat shaded his raven-masked face. He teetered as he walked, as if unable to fully control his body. And as he staggered in a zig-zag toward her, green magic seeped from his clothes and mask. The grass at his feet, wet from the rain, withered and died.
“Doctor Blight,” Viviana said. “I’ve heard tales about you.”
He laughed again. “Have you? What do you know? What do you know?”
“That everywhere you go, blight follows. That whenever a plague reaches a village, you’re seen leaving it.”
“The board is set, yes it is! And I am a piece. A little piece. One of many!”
!LUV
