The Orb In the Sword Chapter: 6 Copyright 1998
	------------------------------- By Ben Christie.
					All Rights Reserved.

	When afternoon came the following day in the
Northern Miayt plains so did the full force of the sun. With
little cover in the plains there was no wait of avoiding the
sun's rays. From heat like a fire, the ground became hot
charcoal beneath the feet of those who traveled the path.
	Walking the dirt path Graykit and Sasha made their
way away from the kingdom of Miayt and towards the Cliffs
of Cavenmore. At Graykit's side was the newly bought
sword with the black orb still latched in the clutches of the
hilt. Both the foxes' heads were covered with white cloth
which draped down them like cloaks and they carried
pouches of water to kill their thirst.
	Graykit paused in the heat of the sun and glared up
at the magnificent sol. It too glared back at him with intense
light, and he quickly looked away.
	Sasha was drinking her water, wetting her mouth
and keeping her throat moist. It would mean certain death
for both had they no water with them.
	Graykit was bent over, hands on his knees taking
deep breaths of the fresh air around him. "There's not a
cloud in sight."
	Sasha swallowed a final gulp of water and sealed the
pouch. "You're telling me."
	"Henrik is just over these hill's, right?"
	"I'm pretty sure. I've been here countless times
before."
	"And they have a blacksmith?"
	"Positive."
	Graykit gripped the dull sword at his side. "Good.
Then I can get rid of this worthless weapon."
	"You wont get much for you."
	"You've been telling me that the entire day."
	Sasha watched as another traveler, as parched as
they were, walked by them. "I thought you were suppose to
be a master of deceit?"
	"What's that suppose to mean?"
	"Well, obviously someone coned you, oh master."
	Graykit gave a low growl. "Just watch your mou--"
	Graykit yelped dropping the rusty sword to his side.
	"What happened?" Sasha asked.
	"The sword," Graykit replied. "It's hotter then the
sun."
	"Oh give me a break. Even in this heat, your sword
wouldn't get that hot."
	"Okay. You try and pick it up," he insisted.
	Sasha reached over and gripped the handle of the
sword. Without hesitation she released her grip and pulled
away. "What the Hell?"
	"Damned if I know."
	"In all my years working with swords I've never seen
a sword heat up that much from the sun."
	Graykit reached down, grabbed the bottom of his
cloak and torn a strip of cloth off. He used the strip to grab
the sword and unsheathe it. "Maybe there is something
weird about this sword after all."
	"You're blowing things out of proportion again,"
Sasha remarked.
	"I never blew things out of proportion before. How
about you explain to me why this sword is boiling hot?
Huh? Explain to me please."
	"The sun heated it up."
	"The sun?"
	"Yes."
	"You said before that you've never seen a sword
heat up this mu--"
	"Well, it's either that of believing that it's an all
magical sword."
	The hilt had cooled enough for Graykit to grip the
sword with a bare paw. He scowled at Sasha and slid the
sword back into its sheathe. "Maybe I wont get this sword
melted down at Henrik."
	"Listen," Sasha barked. "I'm not going to stand in
this blazing heat a minute longer listening to your inane
babble about some God awful sword. So shut your muzzle
and we can discuss you're all powerful rip-off when we
reach Henrik and not a moment before. Deal?"
	"Fine." Graykit frowned. "But you're just jealous."
	Sasha was quick to grab at her sword.
	"Okay. You win. We don't talk about the sword
until we reach Henrik."
	"Good," she said, smiling lightly. "Good."
	Sasha continued on down the path. Graykit waited a
moment and took a sip of his water. Having slurped it back
he fastened the lid back on and jogged to catch up with
Sasha.