"Ellen, I must have been possessed too, just now. When I grabbed the gun." "Of course. First time?" He shook his head. For some reason the brand on his forehead began to throb. "Well, then you know. Look out here, now." They were at the great pier windows that looked out over the valley. Down below was the river, an arc of the railroad tracks, the wooded mountainside he had scaled. "Over there, Chandler." She was pointing to the railroad bridge. Wispy gray smoke drifted off southward toward the stream. The freight train Chandler had ridden on had been stopped, all that time, in the middle of the bridge. The explosion that blew out their windows had occurred when another train plowed into it--evidently at high speed. It seemed that one of the trains had carried some sort of chemicals. The bridge was a twisted mess. "A diversion, Chandler," said Ellen Braisted. "They wanted us looking that way. Then they attacked from up the mountain." "Who?" Ellen looked surprised. "The men that crashed the trains ... if they _are_ men. The ones who possessed me--and you--and the hunters. They don't like these Orphalese, I think. Maybe they're a little afraid of them. I think the Orphalese have a pretty good idea of how to fight them." Chandler felt a sudden flash of sensation along his nerves. For a moment he thought he had been possessed again, and then he knew it for what it was. It was hope. "Ellen, I never thought of fighting them. I thought that was given up two years ago." "So maybe you agree with me? Maybe you think it's worth while sticking with the Orphalese?" Chandler allowed himself the contemplation of what hope meant. To find someone in this world who had a _plan_! Whatever the plan was. Even if it was a bad plan. He didn't think specifically of himself, or the brand on his forehead or the memory of the body of his wife. What he thought of was the prospect of thwarting--not even defeating, merely hampering or annoying was enough!--the imps, the "flame creatures," the pythons, devils, incubi or demons who had destroyed a world he had thought very fair. "If they'll have me," he said, "I'll stick with them, all right! Where do I go to join?" * * * * * It was not hard to join at all. Meg chattily informed him that he was already practically a member. "Chandler, we got to watch everybody strange, you know. See why, don't you? Might have a flame spirit in 'em, no fault of theirs, but look how they could mess us up. But now we know you don't, so--What do you mean, how do we know? Cause you _did_ have one when you busted loose in there. Can't have two at a time, you know. Think we couldn't tell the difference?"