Now Kuo was sneezing. It was catching. Shih-ka’i felt the dust in his own nose. He fought the sneeze… There was nothing he could do. He hurried to the top, spun, shoved his burden into Pan ku’s arms. Pan ku had gotten his own nose under control by grinding at it with his free hand. Shih-ka’i doffed his mask till the sneezing passed.

The god in the box seemed to have settled back into sleep. “That was close,” Shih-ka’i muttered.

“What now, Lord?” Hsu Shen asked.

“Back to the island. We’ll put weights on the box, spells on one of the boats, and sail it out to sea. It’ll run into a storm and go down.”

Hsu Shen nodded. He took Lord Kuo’s lantern, signaled his soldiers. They began withdrawing. Most of them had departed by the time Shih-ka’i reached the transfer point.

“I’ll go last,” he said. “Just in case.” The godlet still had not wakened. “Be ready when I arrive. Hsu Shen, you go now. Prepare the boat, and begin sending your men on to Lioantung.”

“As you command, Lord.”

The minutes rolled away. At last there was no one left but Lord Kuo and Pan ku. “Lord,” Shih-ka’i said, “I’ll give you a few minutes before I come through. Have a good ambush ready. The transfer may waken it.”

Wen-chin nodded and departed.

“Go, Pan ku.”

“Lord…”

“I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

“As you will, Lord.” Pan ku disappeared.

Shih-ka’i stared down at the box. What would the godlet do? Surely transfer would waken it. Could they control it long enough to put it into a boat? How powerful was it?

He waited five minutes. Before transferring he set the portal to collapse behind him. No one would return the box to the desert should it grab a man as it did the dead. He took a deep breath, stepped into the portal.

The thing wakened as Shih-ka’i reached the island. A finger of power stabbed his brain. He staggered. “You!” the thing in there bellowed. He moaned. Its rage was stronger than he had expected. Its angry, greedy tentacles drove into him, taking control….

Ssu-ma Shih-ka’i was stubborn. He turned, threw the box. It bounced across the floor.

Lord Kuo smacked it with a bolt of power that did no harm at all. Shih-ka’i dove after the box, smacked a fist against its side. It tumbled onward, into the pulsing black maw of the portal.

A dwindling scream faded from Shih-ka’i’s mind.

Pan ku reached his side. “Are you hurt, Lord?”

Shih-ka’i allowed himself to be lifted to his feet. “I think I’ll live, Pan ku. Damn my bones, I’m afraid I’m going to.” He leaned on his batman. “It almost caught my soul.”

Hsu Shen came roaring in. “What happened?”

“It woke up,” Lord Kuo explained. “My Lord threw it back through the transfer.”

“Oh, no! It’s back in the desert? What’ll we do?”